Thunders Legacy [B. Barnes] [Thunder Wolf B.2]

Chapter 13

"It was only a minute, and you were missing. I became frantic, beginning to scour the forest for you. It didn't take me long to locate you. I'm still unsure how you got as far away as you did in a short time. But I found you, sadly I was worried that I hadn't made it in time. You sat in a meadow, giggling as you picked flowers, paying no mind to the creatures around you. Circling you, ready for your to be their next meal, was a pack of wolves, and as much as it pained me, I did what I had to protect you."

"You killed them," Fern's voice cracked.

"Only one. It was enough to scare the rest of them off and never return. From that day on, things changed. Your father and mother agreed that it was best to hide the powers the three of you had until there was no explanation for what was happening. Sadly, that meant also keeping me from you as much as they could. I was always there when needed, but I stayed on my mountain until then. Your brothers' powers were easier to hide from you. One could control small amounts of electricity at a time, and the other, as long as you never saw him doing it, could fly. It was getting harder to keep the truth from you as you got older; finding Elder was the apex. So we staged an event, using it to make you believe that was how you got your powers."

"So, talking to animals, controlling plants, I could always do that. So why can't I do it anymore? Why, when Ryker tries to tell me something, all I hear is a sad wolf, can't I just understand him? Why can't I go to Elder for answers if I should have no problem hearing him? I miss Buzz's overly hyper speech and his smart-ass comments about Bucky and Sam." Fern choked back a sob.

"When Hydra first came to the house, your grandmother instantly knew some of the men; it had been nearly forty years, but she never forgot. She warned your father, telling him to wait until they left to come and alert me. We all should have known better. Hydra had left some men behind, hidden, so when your father snuck up the mountain to tell me, it was too late. I fought off as many of them as I could while your father, with my egg, ran. He hid the egg before returning to help me, but he was too late. Hydra had captured me, and nothing was going to stop them from getting what they wanted.

"They quickly explained that they had found a folder that belonged to your grandfather, stating information about his family and Ryker. That was what they were initially after, but as they began digging, they found information about the rainstorm and other events that led them to believe something else was happening. It was now their mission to uncover what the Harver family was hiding. I would become their new weapon, and the rest of you would as well.

"They started with your grandmother, trying to force out any information she might have on your grandfather's research. Had her heart not given out, I don't know what would have happened to her. She was the lucky one. Upon testing with your father and mother, it was found that your mother carried a gene that nearly guaranteed that her children would be born with supernatural powers. Your father, as intelligent and noble as he was, was not unique. They began the testing on your mother, I won't go into details, but she died protecting you, Fern. That is what matters. The night your mother died, your father snapped, he had come up with a hair-brained idea, and nothing was going to stop him from seeing it through. He broke out of his room late at night, the guards were in the middle of a shift change, and since his room was across from the lab, he rushed to free me, begging me to flee or to take them all out. Sadly, he couldn't release me before Hydra ended his life. All that was left was you and your brothers. So began the torture of watching you three be poked and prodded in the lab, be forced to use your powers, and become broken children.

"I tried my hardest the day they began testing you. I couldn't keep myself from forming the link I promised never to, but it was the only way to keep you safe. I wish I could have saved all of you, but I could only form one link, and being greedy, I picked you. I had hopes that if your brothers behaved, Hydra wouldn't kill them. The first was a freak accident; they pushed so much electricity through that boy, and he would never be able to handle it at his age. The other tried to run, so they were quick to end him. That left the two of us hanging on for dear life.

"The day Bucky arrived, I felt something; he looked into my eyes, and I did the only thing I could and gave him a vision. It didn't seem to faze him at first, but watching him with you in the first week, watching him be beaten within an inch of his life to protect you, I knew it had worked. I continued breaking into Bucky's memories, showing him events from his past and future, hoping that I could break through enough that he would take you and run. By the time I had broken through enough, he was sent away. I began to lose hope, I had been away from my egg for too long, and my spirit was broken from watching them hurt you.

"In the middle of the night, a human loosened the straps holding me down. At first, I paid no mind, expecting that it was a test, a reason for them to break me. But then I saw the fire and the Hydra agents in a frenzy to put it out. I broke the bindings and destroyed most of the house as I fought to get you away."

"I remember waking up on the ground as the fire roared around us. You told me they had set fire to the forest and I had to run to the lake and stay there until it was safe. After that, I remember waking up to SHIELD agents everywhere." Fern's face dropped, remembering the events. "The person who freed you and set the fire, they must have been undercover; that would have been the only way Fury and his men would have shown up." Now Fern's brain was racing to know who the agent was. She needed to know.

"I now believe that as well. From then on, I'm sure you remember the rest."

"You never really explained what made me so special. I sound no different from my brothers."

"You were born to help. Your powers gave you the resources you needed. You can rebuild entire landscapes with the snap of your fingers. You can speak to any living creature and help them. You can take my place. Protecting the forest and its animals, protecting all living creatures. The day I first laid eyes on you and watched your eyes change to match mine, I knew you would rule my kind." A tear falls from the bird's eye. "You only believe that you don't have your powers, Fern. But they never left you. You were still caught up in a lie made to protect you. A lie that I took all too far and led you to believe was the only truth. But now, you need to do what you were born to do, be who you are meant to be."

"What if I don't want to be the new Queen of the Thunderbirds. I'm no Thunderbird; I'm only human. I can't protect them the way a real Thunderbird can. Thunder, you need to give the powers to Mellan, the others can teach him, and he'll be able to care for them when he's older." Fern sobs clutching to the Thunderbird. She wasn't ready to fully let Thunder go, nor was she prepared to step into shoes that she would never be able to fill.

The Thunderbird screeched, spreading its wings. "It is your choice what to do, Fern. They are your powers now, your title. I know you will do your best. I know you will do everything you can to protect my legacy."

"I'm not ready to say goodbye. I still have so many questions!"

"And I will always be right here," Thunder presses her beak to Fern's chest. "If you need me or just want to chat. I am always with you, Fern."