Chapter 51
“Looooser.” Anna repeatedly poked me in the side.
I gave her a dry look, but that only earned me another giggle before she wandered off to grab more food. After the race, we’d pigged out on a ridiculous amount of street food and takeout, turning some random skyscraper roof into an impromptu buffet.
“Don’t sweat it.” Spider-Man patted me on the back. “You never stood a chance against a born-and-raised New Yorker.”
He cheered through a mouthful of food, and I snorted. Apparently, Peter Parker’s legendary financial troubles still held in this universe, because the guy was going absolutely wild over all the options.
I was definitely faster than him, but constantly making rapid turns had been a lot harder than I expected. Most of my long-distance teleports had been in a straight line. Trying to follow a more complicated route had turned into absolute hell on my senses, even with all my traits helping me.
Well, it was probably better to figure that out now rather than during a more dangerous situation. All things considered, I probably shouldn’t be too upset about losing.
“Git gud, son.” Anna taunted as she shook her cup at me.
Okay, that I couldn’t let slide.
I raised an eyebrow before teleporting beside her and snatching the cup from her hand. A moment later, I blinked away again and took a long sip.
Mmm. Milkshake.
I flipped her off as I drank. Anna pouted and returned the gesture before marching off to grab another one.
Chuckling, I walked over and sat beside Spider-Man.
He let out a loud burp and leaned back. “I’m stuffed. Seriously, thanks for the food.”
“No problem.” I waved a hand. “You’ve got my number, so if you ever need a hand, give me a call. You’ve got Stark’s too. He’s been dying to meet you.”
“Right. Tony freaking Stark.” Spider-Man chuckled nervously, then fell silent for several seconds.
For a moment, I considered asking him to unmask. Maybe tell him to cash in on his web fluid, convince him to work with Stark, or do something to curb whatever bullshit this universe would inevitably throw at Peter Parker.
In the end, though, I kept quiet. I respected Spider-Man too much to make that decision for him.
“I’ll think about it,” he finally said.
Spider-Man held out his hand, and I shook it.
“See you around!”
He stepped off the edge of the roof and disappeared into the city.
Anna walked up beside me, sipping her replacement milkshake as she watched him swing away.
“You think he’ll be okay?”
“He will.” I stared after him for another moment before shaking my head. “Spider-Man’s the man.”
Then I turned back toward the food.
“But enough serious stuff. I’m freaking starving! Pass me the truffle fries.”
“Hey, wait! Those are my favorite!”
—
The New York Sanctum was a nice change of pace from the rest of the city. Knowing I wasn’t going to stumble into the Hand, Hydra, or some up-and-coming supervillain was reassuring. Still, as much as I wanted a vacation, the world didn’t stop turning.
Over the past couple of days, Anna had made quite a few trips back to the Chaste. I was starting to regret gaslighting them into believing she was the Iron Fist, if only because of how much work it was causing her.
Still, having an army of master martial artists on our side was too useful to pass up. I’d find some way to make it up to Anna later.
Besides, my own hands hadn’t exactly been idle.
“A collar?” Xavier said with obvious disgust.
“Yeah.” I drummed my fingers against the table, holding the phone in my other hand. “From what I could tell, it was either some kind of bomb collar or a power dampener.”
Honestly, the Wanda I’d faced seemed pretty fucking powerful. She probably could’ve torn off a normal collar without much effort. Either it had been some kind of advanced supertech, or they had enough leverage over her that she hadn’t dared try.
“I see.” Xavier’s voice hardened.
“How are the talks going?”
“Your introduction was helpful, though I’ll admit there has been some reluctance on both sides.” A sigh came through the line. “Our differing… professions have made cooperation somewhat difficult.”
“Yeah, I can imagine.” Nick Fury, of all people, probably wasn’t thrilled about dealing with a telepath.
“Still, I believe I may take them up on their offer of cooperation,” Xavier continued. “Perhaps even more extensively than I originally intended. Tell me, in your opinion, can S.H.I.E.L.D. be trusted?”
“Nick Fury’s an uptight asshole,” I openly admitted. “But he wouldn’t stoop to putting a collar on someone. I can at least give him that.”
Well, not a literal collar, anyway. He’d probably prefer something involving blackmail and leverage.
“He’s someone you can work with,” I finished. “Just keep him at arm’s length, and you should be fine.”
“I’m grateful for the insight,” Xavier replied. “If things go well, I may even consider calling an old friend for help.”
I raised an eyebrow at that. Was he actually willing to call Magneto?
“Yes,” Xavier replied with complete confidence. “My old friend and I have had our disagreements, but if Erik learns of their origins and everything you’ve told me...”
Ah, right. Good old Nazis.
Still, having a murderous Magneto cooperating with us was probably a good thing.
Xavier and I talked a little longer, with the professor occasionally trying to coax more information out of me. Honestly, I couldn’t even blame him for trying.
Verbal sparring aside, the call ended on a hopeful note.
Convincing everyone to actually work together was going to be a pain in the ass, but I felt pretty good about how things were going.
S.H.I.E.L.D. was actually doing something instead of sitting around until everything exploded in their faces. If the Chaste and Xavier joined the effort, hopefully it would be enough to defang Hydra.
Maybe even enough to keep S.H.I.E.L.D. from collapsing altogether.
Nick Fury was an uptight, manipulative asshole, but the chaos that followed S.H.I.E.L.D.’s destruction in the MCU timeline was something I definitely wanted to avoid. Once the organization fell, every hidden threat seemed to crawl out of the woodwork at once. Whatever other bullshit this universe had waiting in the wings would be much harder to deal with without S.H.I.E.L.D. holding at least some of it together.
This world was already different from the one I remembered, so I’d rather keep the odds stacked as heavily in my favor as possible.
I looked down at my hand and slowly rolled the Ring of the Sun Princess across my palm.
Hopefully I could stack the deck just a little bit more.
—
Bucky Barnes lay across the padded table with his eyes closed. Several sticks of incense had been placed around him, their smoke drifting lazily through the air. The Ring of the Sun Princess rested on his right hand, its golden band catching the light.
“You’re sure this will work?” I asked the Ancient One.
“Reasonably certain.” She nodded as her hands wove glowing circles of sorcery through the air. “Kamar-Taj’s healers have already cleared his mind of the hypnosis.”
I blinked. “Shouldn’t he be awake, then?”
“His mind may be clear, but his spirit…” She shook her head. “For lack of a better word, it’s atrophied.”
“Hydra didn’t use any magic on him, as far as I remember.” I frowned. Unless they’d used some kind of alien tech.
“I won’t discount the possibility, but the more likely cause is simply weariness.” The Ancient One sighed. “The mind, body, and soul are intricately linked. Physically, he may have been healthy, but no mind was meant to live as a puppet. Purging those restraints threw his soul into disarray, and this constant coma is its attempt to restore that balance. I imagine Mr. Barnes would have suffered some lingering effects even after being freed.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” I said cautiously. “Is it permanent?”
“No, but under normal circumstances, his soul's recovery would likely have taken years.”
Damn. PTSD on top of soul sickness probably sucked ass.
The Ancient One snorted.
“Thankfully, we have something far from normal at our disposal.” Her gaze shifted toward the golden ring on Bucky’s hand. “Items capable of healing the soul are exceedingly rare.”
The Ancient One moved to stand at the head of the table.
“With the ring restoring his spirit, a small push in the right direction should be enough to wake him.”
She pressed two fingers against Bucky’s forehead. The strands of sorcery surrounding him suddenly flared, filling the room with a brilliant shower of sparks before vanishing just as quickly.
Bucky remained completely still.
I turned toward the Ancient One. “Was that supposed to—”
A metal fist swung toward my face.
I blinked out of the way just before it connected. Bucky rolled off the table and hit the floor in a crouch, his movements unsteady. He remained on one knee, breathing heavily as his eyes darted around the room.
“What…” His voice came out hoarse. “Where am I?”
I raised my hands and approached him slowly. “Bucky, is that you?”
His head snapped toward me.
“Bucky?” he repeated.
His gaze dropped to his hands, lingering on the metal one before shifting to the golden ring around his finger. Confusion tightened his expression as he slowly curled both hands into fists.
“I’m…” He swallowed. “I’m Bucky.”
[Feat Achieved! Winter Soldier No More!]
[+1 Silver Gacha Ticket]
That seemed a little low. Had I gotten a weaker ticket because I wasn’t entirely responsible for healing him?
Something to look into later, when I didn’t have a disoriented assassin kneeling in front of me.
“How much do you remember?”
Bucky gripped his hair with both hands as he stared blankly at the floor.
“Everything.”
His voice came out hollow and defeated. Tears slowly gathered in his eyes before slipping down his face.
Well, shit… that wasn’t good.
I hadn’t wanted to spring this on him so quickly, but he clearly needed something to hold on to.
“Steve’s alive.”
Bucky’s head snapped up toward me.
“Welcome to the future, Bucky. Let’s get you up to speed and introduce you to an old friend.” I held out my hand. “Once you’re caught up, you can decide what comes next.”
Slowly, almost hesitantly, he reached out and took my hand. “...Next?”
“Well…” I gave him a fierce grin. “I think a little payback is only fair, don’t you?”
Bucky stared at me for a moment, his expression hardening as he tightened his grip.
***
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