January 2013
For the next few months, Gwen soared through her training. She accomplished the spells that Sajit had been trying so hard to train her on, she mastered conjuring shields, and she could even conjure a few basic weapons. It wasn't a whole lot, but according to Sajit, she was climbing up the ladder pretty fast.
Today, Sajit had taken her to the courtyard yet again, telling her that they were going to be doing something special. Stephen and Mordo were also outside with them, several yards away. Gwen was watching them out of the corner of her eye.
"Are you listening to me?" Sajit asked, noticing where her gaze was.
Gwen turned her head back quickly and nodded. "I was," she protested.
Sajit shook his head and pushed it aside. "Today, I will be training you how to fight. You will need to conjure shields and weapons much faster than you have in the past. You will also need to be quick and light on your feet."
"Why?" Gwen asked right away, as she almost always did. She never just accepted Sajit's word. "Am I going to be fighting often? Is there some sort of wizard fight club that I'm unaware of?"
Ignoring her sarcastic comments, Sajit nodded darkly. "You never know. My father could have used it."
"Your father?" she echoed.
Again, he nodded. "He was the librarian here. Nearly a year ago, Kaecilius, the Zealot, killed him when he stole the pages out of the Book of Cagliostro."
"Oh. I'm, uh, sorry," Gwen said awkwardly.
Sajit brushed it away. "He died bravely. I'm honored to be his son." His somber expression was replaced by a serious one. "Now, conjure a weapon, and we'll begin."
Concentrating on surrendering, Gwen drew up a lengthy golden rope, strung between the palms of her hands. She barely had time to look up when suddenly, Sajit was charging her. Gwen lifted the weapon to block his blow. She stumbled from the force and nearly fell.
He did not let up. His attacks came swiftly and suddenly, leaving Gwen no time to stop and take a breath. Gym and sports had never been her strong suit, so going this fast was quickly wearing her out.
Eventually, she lost her footing and fell to the ground. Sajit didn't let up even then. He aimed a kick at her ribs. Gwen lifted her hands to protect herself and his shoes connected with her fingers. It hurt, but not too badly.
That's when she had a thought. She screwed up her face in pain and grasped her fingers, holding them close to her chest. "Ow!" she hissed loudly. "That hurts like a bitch!"
Sajit halted his attack. "Are you alright?" he asked, crouching down to her level.
"I think you broke my fingers," she whimpered, wincing as she sat up.
"Let me see," Sajit said, now distracted by his concern for her. Gwen slowly held out her fingers towards him. Then, bam! She curled her hand into a fist and punched him, right on the nose.
Sajit was not expecting the sudden attack and he was thrown off balance. Gwen stood quickly and kicked him in the face, knocking him to the ground. Sajit swore in Nepali, rubbing his cheek. Gwen conjured another weapon and held it over him.
"You fought dirty," he accused, though he was actually mildly impressed. He wouldn't have thought to do that.
Gwen shrugged, not concealing the smirk on her face. "Not everyone is going to fight fair in the real world. Like Kaecilius."
She had a point. Sajit nodded grudgingly. "Fair enough, but not more tricks. Here, we fight with honor."
Gwen nodded in agreement, accepting his conditions. She allowed Sajit back to his feet and they started again.
Stephen watched his daughter with a mixture of pride and amusement. He would never have thought to pull something like that. Besides, he doubted that it would work if he tried it. A grown man on the floor whining was pathetic. But a pretty, young woman? People would fall for that more easily.
She had played to her strengths. Stephen was well aware that she was a novice in sports and gym. She never joined any sports teams in school and there was a good reason for it. But she was always incredibly smart and cunning. Coming up with a trick like that was a classic Gwen move. And Stephen was proud of her for it.
"Pay attention, Stephen," Mordo lectured him and he turned back to his instructor.
March 2013
Gwen had gone down to the library to check out books on how to cast binding spells. Sajit had shown her how, though he had claimed that she was not quite ready for it. However, as per usual, she had gone ahead and ignored her instructors requests.
She hadn't been to the library before. Her father usually let her borrow the books after he read them, which she had been fine with. However, he hadn't gotten anything on binding spells yet, so she was off to take her first trip to the library. She sipped at her Dr. Pepper as she walked. Now that she had mastered conjuring portals, she liked to leave the sanctum more often, returning to New York to visit restaurants she hadn't been to in a while and just taking a break from everything. Her last trip had been to pick up a Dr. Pepper and some chips (she definitely had an addiction).
The library was quiet. There was no one in there but the librarian. He stood behind a wooden table, reading one of the books. He looked up when she walked in. Gwen offered him a charming smile. "Hey," she said. He just grunted and nodded. "I'm looking for books on binding spells."
"Binding spells?" he echoed, eyeing the Dr. Pepper with distaste.
Gwen noticed his gaze. "Oh, sorry. Is food not allowed in the library?"
"Where did you get that?" he asked, ignoring her question.
She shrugged. "Seven eleven. They had sixty-four cent big gulps."
"You left Kamar-Taj?" Gwen nodded casually. "That's against the rules."
Gwen just raised her eyebrows. "Well, I'm sorry, but I fail to see how my whereabouts are any of your business, sir." She took another sip of her drink, not breaking eye contact.
The librarian narrowed his eyes at her. "You are Guinevere Strange, yes?"
She tipped an invisible hat to him. "At your service." He did not smile. "Do you not have a sense of humor?" He just stared at her. "What's your name, anyway?"
"Wong," he grunted.
"Ok, Mr. Wong. I'm sorry for leaving Kamar-Taj," said Gwen, though she didn't exactly sound sorry. "Can I get books on binding spells and then I'll be out of your hair."
Wong shook his head. "You can't possibly be ready for that."
"Why? Is this hard for people or something?" she asked with a roll of her eyes. "I'm ready for it. I know I am. And even if I'm not, then wouldn't it be easier to learn it with the book in hand?" He refused to answer her. "You seriously won't give it to me?" Silence. Gwen opened her mouth in fury when she was cut off by another voice.
"Let her have the book, Master Wong." It was the Ancient One. Without any argument or question, Wong left to retrieve the book. The Ancient One looked at Gwen with a sharp eye. "You're advancing quickly, Guinevere," she commented. Gwen said nothing, for fear of sounding too arrogant to the one woman that had helped her more than anyone here. "Sajit is impressed with you. However, he says that you still demonstrate an attitude of arrogance and rule breaking."
Gwen felt the need to defend herself. "Look, I just wanted a Dr. Pepper. I didn't know that was a crime. Am I supposed to be a prisoner here?"
The Ancient One shook her head. "Quite the opposite, actually. You stay here because you chose to be here. And for your own safety. Sajit said he told you what happened to his father."
"So because one idiot is out there, I'm supposed to stay shut up in here like some kind of hermit?" she retorted. "These rules you have make no sense. You said on the first day my father and I came here to rethink everything we know, to open our eyes. Now we are expected to just blindly accept rules and instructions with no explanation."
"Is that how you see it? As blindness?" The Ancient One asked gently. Gwen didn't answer because she wasn't sure what the Ancient One meant. "Faith isn't blindness, Guinevere. You trust your father without question. Is that blindness? No, it isn't. It is trust. And that's what we ask from all that join our ranks. That you trust us."
Gwen simply nodded, understanding what she was trying to say. Gwen had never been much for faith in the unknown before, but now was as good a time as any. Everything about her world was changing. She had to change with it.
Wong returned moments later with the books that she would need. "Thank you, Wong," the Ancient One said, and he nodded. Her eyes locked with Gwen's again. "Good luck, Guinevere."
March 2013
"Today, we're going to take a short field trip." Sajit was leading her through the halls of Kamar-Taj, to an unfamiliar part of the building.
"I thought we weren't allowed to leave Kamar-Taj," she countered quickly.
"Not at first," he agreed. "For our own protection, the Ancient One asks us to remain here until we are ready to protect ourselves out there. But we won't be leaving. At least, not in the same sense that you are thinking. It will make sense when you see it."
She didn't ask any more questions as they wandered past the library. He opened a door to a room with a high ceiling and an orb sitting on a stone pillar in the middle of the room. The room was dimly lit, and on the ceiling was a sphere that looked like earth. "What is this?" she asked in wonder, not taking her eyes off the ceiling.
"This is what we do here," he answered. "When I was training you how to fight, you asked if you would be fighting often. My answer is yes. Kamar-Taj is not just a school for the mystic arts. We are here to protect the earth from other dimensions that would seek to harm us."
"So… we're like the Avengers or something?" she asked slowly. Sajit nodded once. "And you didn't think to tell me that before I signed up for this suicide mission?"
"Where would be the faith in that?" he shot back. "Faith and trust, Gwen. It's very important here. If you had known what we did here before you agreed to your training, where would you be? Working as a nurse, caring for your stubborn father, trying to keep both of you alive and afloat. That is not the life you deserve, Gwen. You were born for this, I can tell. This is where you belong." She half wanted to snap at him for insulting her father, but she was overwhelmed by a sudden rush of pleasure from the compliment he had given her. He thought that she was meant to be here. He had confidence in her. "Exactly," he said in soft satisfaction. "You were made for this life. I know you've always wanted to be a doctor, but the work we do here is more important. And I know that you are going to be here for a long time to come."
Gwen still said nothing. She wasn't sure how to respond. Usually, she only got compliments from her father. Most others didn't really like her. They recognized that she was smart and accomplished, but if anything, this just made them dislike her all the more. Sajit had at first treated her much the same way. But this was different. He had expressed an admiration and appreciation for her talents without an underlying bitterness.
Was this what having a real friend was like?
"As I was saying, there are three places around the earth, called sanctums, that guard from other dimensions," he explained. "There's the New York Sanctum, the London Sanctum, and the Hong Kong Sanctum. We're going to visit the London Sanctum."
Gwen, who had always wanted to go to London, nodded enthusiastically. He guided her through the door on their right. Unlike the walls of Kamar-Taj, which were usually a dull brown or gray, these walls were bright white. The light shone on it, making it seem golden.
They turned a corner and entered a wide room, with high, vaulted ceilings. It looked a lot like a museum, with lots of glass cases and artifacts inside them. "What are these things?" Gwen asked, looking curiously at a singular arrow inside a glass case.
"Relics," he answered simply. "Some magic is too powerful for us to harness, so we imbue objects with it. This one is The Arrow of Apollon."
"So, do we all get a relic?"
"When you are ready, yes," he nodded.
"Do you have one?"
He nodded and pulled a necklace out from under his shirt. It had an orange stone attached to it. "This is the Gem of Gideon. It enhances my ability to conjure Eldritch Magic." It was glowing slightly. Gwen stared at it closely until he tucked it back under his shirt.
She turned around and continued to look around at all the relics while Sajit narrated the stories behind them.
"And this here is the Staff of Moriancum." He gestured to a wooden staff that lay on a display table, not guarded by any glass. "It's a powerful object, and it helps with performing types of magic we usually cannot."
"Such as?" Gwen asked eagerly.
Sajit shrugged. "Telekinesis, presence concealment, and changing one's shape."
"Telekinesis?" she echoed. "Like mind control or mind reading?"
"No, that's telepathy. The staff would allow you to move things without touching them. It takes a lot of will power to wield the staff. A good amount of self control and self discipline," he explained. "And even with all that, your ability to perform those acts would be limited. More powerful beings than us, such as Asgardians can do these things easily, but our mortality limits us."
"Well, that's stupid," Gwen muttered. She glanced longingly at the staff and reached out a hand to grab it. Sajit's hand shot out to stop her.
"No," he said right away. "We don't know what will happen if you try to use it. You could be killed for all we know. Better to leave it."
"Fine," she sighed, allowing him to drag her away from it.
"We should return," Sajit said. They started the walk back to the entrance to Kamar-Taj when they heard a sudden explosion. Sajit grabbed her arm and pulled her down to the ground.
"What the hell was that?" Gwen just about shouted. Sajit slapped a hand over her mouth to shut her up.
"It came from the front door," he whispered. "Follow me. Keep low." He took small steps towards the entrance, keeping his head low. Gwen followed his lead, her hands ready to conjure a weapon if necessary.
As they got closer to the front door, they heard voices. "- don't know why you must make it so difficult for yourself, Sol. Let us pass. You can join us." Sajit stiffened right away. A fiery glare came over his eyes. He looked angrier than Gwen had ever seen him.
"Who is it?" she asked in a low voice.
"Kaecilius," he said through his clenched teeth. Gwen suddenly understood why he looked so angry. It was the man who had killed his father. She reached out a hand and tightly grasped his arm, just above his elbow.
"Don't," she said, shaking her head. She knew that he would want to go after him for revenge. "It's not worth it. Let's just go get back up."
He tugged his arm out of her grasp. "Suppose he had killed your father?" he hissed. "Would you just sit here?"
That brought her up short. She wanted to say no, just to stop him from charging into certain death, but that was not the honest answer. If he had killed her father, then nothing would stop her from trying to kill him. The very thought made her blood boil. She shook her head slowly.
"I'm going to stop him," he whispered. "Are you going to help?"
Again, she nodded. What else could she do? She couldn't just stand and watch. It was like Sajit had said. She had chosen this place, this life. It was time to do her part.
"On my count," he whispered, holding up three fingers. Gwen held her hands in front of her, focusing on letting go again. He dropped a finger. She exhaled slowly, hoping that she would have the chance to see her father one last time. Another finger. She offered a silent prayer in her head. The last finger.
Both of them jumped to their feet, conjuring weapons for themselves. All the Zealots looked up sharply, some turning their weapons to the two of them.
"Kaecilius!" Sajit roared. "You will pay for all the lives you've taken."
Kaecilius started to pace, looking faintly amused. "Your loyalty to Kamar-Taj and the Ancient One will get you nowhere, Sajit," he told him.
"And your loyalty to Dormammu will bring you only death and destruction," he retorted.
Kaecilius ignored him. His gaze was on Gwen. "And how long have you been at Kamar-Taj, Miss?..."
"It's Strange," she said to him.
"Maybe," he said. "But I do not judge."
Sajit gave a roar of anger and started to charge. Kaecilius lifted his hands and conjured something, though whatever it was, it was practically invisible.
Sol, the Master of the London Sanctum, reached out his leg and kicked Kaecilius in the side. He grunted and fell to the ground. "Go!" Sol shouted, waving them away. "I'll hold them off!"
Gwen turned and started to run, but Sajit didn't. Gwen stopped to try and drag him along. "Sajit, come on! We've got to go!"
He shook his head furiously. "No. I'll help Sol. You go. Save yourself."
"Don't be such an idiot!" she shouted. "We're outnumbered! You won't be able to stop him and you'll just end up dead! Come with me and live to fight another day!" Sajit was still shaking his head. "Your father wouldn't want you to die for him, Sajit!" she practically screamed. "Come on!"
Slowly, he nodded. "You're right. Let's- "
They were cut off by another crash, right near their heads. Shattered glass rained over them. They ducked and started to run for the Kamar-Taj exit when they were suddenly blocked by two Zealots. Their direction changed and they ran the other way, dodging spells that were shot at the back of them.
"Follow me!" Sajit shouted to her. He ducked between two glass cases and Gwen followed him. "Duck!" he commanded quickly, diving to the floor. Gwen followed him, covering her head, protecting it from shattered glass that showered over them.
Sajit started to army crawl away. Gwen saw blood pouring out of his hands, but she followed him anyway. She could stitch up his hands when they got back.
"Gwen, look out!" he shouted suddenly, drawing her out of her thoughts.
Her head whipped around just in time to see one of the Zealots diving towards her. In a moment of panic, she grabbed the thing nearest to her to use as a shield.
However, instead of blocking the blow, it actually sent him flying backwards, into the ceiling. Then, he fell to the ground, and remained still.
Gwen didn't have time to think about whether or not he was alive. She looked at the object she was holding. It was the Staff of Moriancum. She could wield it.
Again, she had no time to dwell on these thoughts. They had to run to escape the rest of the Zealots. Gwen led the way now, rushing to the exit. The Zealots were on their tail. Sol and Sajit were following her closely.
The exit was severa feet away. Gwen saw three people standing near the orb on the pillar. "Kaecilius!" she shouted to them in warning.
They all started towards her. A loud bell rang out, echoing in her ears. She made it through the door to Kamar-Taj. Now she saw that the three men were Mordo, Wong, and her father. Stephen rushed to her and grabbed her by the shoulders, holding her close.
Gwen looked to the door to the London Sanctum. Sol wasn't there, as she assumed he was. Sajit was, but he was laying on the ground. He wasn't moving.
"Sajit!" she called out. Still, he didn't move. Gwen saw the blood pooling around him. She started towards him, but her father held her back. She tried to struggle against his grip, but it was too late. He was dead, and she couldn't save him.
In a fit of rage, Gwen lifted the staff and tried to send Kaecilius flying back as she had with his Zealot. It worked, but it was much stronger than she had meant. As soon as the wave was sent out, the ceiling began to crack and crumble. Large boulders fell down, blocking the entrance.
Stephen pulled her backwards to avoid them getting smashed by a boulder. They backed into the New York Sanctum. The door was blocked by large boulders. "Wong! Mordo!" Stephen shouted, but there was no response.
They were trapped.
Gwen stared at the rocks, feeling sick to her stomach. Sajit was dead, and she could only blame herself. Had she let him lead the way, he might have made it out of there. She should've done more to save him.
"Are you ok?" Stephen asked her.
She hesitated, then shook her head.
"Are you hurt?" he asked right away. "What's wrong? Where does it hurt?"
But she wasn't injured. Not physically anyway. A single tear slipped out of her eye. She wiped it away furiously, angry with herself for being so emotional. "He's dead," she mumbled. "He's dead and I couldn't save him."
Stephen placed a hand on her shoulder. "There was nothing you could do," he told her.
Gwen spun around and hugged him tightly. Stephen returned her embrace. "It's ok," he said softly, rubbing her back. "It's gonna be ok. I promise."
For a minute, they just stood there, locked in an embrace, with Stephen whispering comforting words to her. Eventually, she calmed down enough to pull away.
"Sorry," she said, rubbing her nose. "I'm just being stupid."
"No, you're not," he assured her. Gwen said nothing and just stared at the ground. "By the way, what's this?" He gestured to the staff in her hands.
She lifted it a little. "It's called the Staff of Moriancum. It's one of the relics in the London Sanctum."
"You have your own relic?" She nodded. He smiled. "Good job."
"Looks like you've got one, too," she said, gesturing to the odd looking necklace he was wearing.
"Oh. No. This isn't a relic. It's the Eye of Agamotto," he explained. "It reverses time. Or controls time. Or something like that."
She smiled a little. He returned her smile. She would be ok. It would take time, but she would be ok. But she would never be the same again.
And maybe that was a good thing.
Triskelion Building
Washington D.C.
March 2013
Clara Anderson knocked sharply on the doors of Nicholas J Fury's office.
"Enter," he answered gruffly from the inside. Clara opened the door and practically stormed in. She held the file aloft, then threw it on his desk with all her might.
"Request denied?" she thundered, fire blazing in her eyes. "Are you serious?"
"Secretary Pierce requested- " Nick began in a calm voice, but Clara angrily interrupted him.
"Screw Pierce, Nick, you know I'm right about this!" She threw up her hands in frustration and started to pace. "I'm so close, I can feel it. I'm so damn close and you just- "
"I tried to stick up for you, Clara," he cut her off. "I told Pierce that you were right about this. But he disagreed. He thinks that you're emotionally unstable. He thinks that the stakes are too high for you and that you're acting out because of it."
Clara spluttered angrily. "Are you kidding me? Too unstable? My daughter was ripped from my arms and he thinks I'm acting crazy? I swear, Nick, I'm going to- "
"Agent Anderson!" Nick said loudly, stopping her rant yet again. Clara stopped this time, recognizing that he was done with her shouting. "You need to stay focused. I know that you want to find your daughter. We all do. We want to stop these criminals, whoever they are. But we can't do that by losing our heads." Clara nodded, grudgingly admitting that he was right. "I'll talk to Pierce about reviewing your mission request again. In the meantime, stay sharp. Keep an eye out. Tell Natasha everything you know. We can trust her."
"I know, Nick," she said wearily. She had helped train Natasha along with her old partner, Clint. She was smart and serious and focused. It was Natasha she had requested as her partner for her mission. If anyone was going to help her rescue her daughter from the bastards that took her, it was Natasha. "Sorry for yelling."
"No you're not," Nick retorted. Clara grinned.
"No, I'm not," she agreed with a shake of her head. "Let me know what Pierce says." With that, she turned and left to go find Natasha.
It didn't take long. Natasha was downstairs, training with a few members of the STRIKE team. Clara wasn't quite nimble enough for STRIKE, but it had been a close call.
Rumlow was observing the spar between Natasha and another agent whose name Clara couldn't recall. "Agent Anderson," he greeted her, a short nod.
"Rumlow," she replied, nodding back. They both turned their attention back to the fight. Natasha moved quickly and gracefully, wrapping her legs around the agent's neck and dragging him to the ground. He struggled against her grasp before tapping her leg, signaling that he was done. Natasha smirked proudly, releasing the agent. She stood up and saw Clara. She ducked between the ropes on the wrestling ring and joined her. "Anderson," she greeted her drolly.
"Romanoff," she replied, smiling back. "Nick sent me to talk to you."
Natasha nodded simply and together, the two women walked out of the room. "My mission request was denied," Clara mentioned as they walked.
Natasha swore under her breath. "I'm so sorry, Clara. I know how important that was to you."
Clara shrugged that away. "Nick didn't say this directly, but he doesn't trust Pierce. Pierce was the reason my request was denied." Natasha nodded, thinking about what it meant. "I don't know exactly what this means, but Nick wants us to keep an eye out."
Natasha nodded. "I will. Has Nick told you about The Lemurian Star yet?" Clara shook her head. "SHIELD is sending STRIKE to stop an attack on one of their ships that they got word of. Supposedly it's going to be an attack from French pirates, but Fury is going to hire the pirates. He wants information that's on the Star and he's sending me in to retrieve it. Once I know more, I'll tell you. I'm guessing it has something to do with your daughter and the people that took her."
"Right," Clara said, voice tight. It had been nearly twenty years since Paige had been taken. And Clara was determined that no more time would pass until she saw Paige again. "Thanks a lot, Natasha."