Mastering Illusions

44

The woods aren't really deserving of the name, being nothing more than a sparse stand of trees providing some shade. But the grass of the plains disappears, and there are some rocks, so I guess it's no longer a field, at least.

The indentation marks from the replica Stones' blast extend out this far, further even, but we don't feel any of the energy remnants attempting to hold us back. That's good. I'd hate to spend this Endeavor battling the Infinity Stones on top of the promised death matches with my competitors.

Veers still seems agitated, but has accepted the presence of our allies without any further comment. I get it, but what can I do? He's wearing that dumb watch. I bet Peggy and Hela worked this out, considering their history together. But a little head's up would have been nice.

After a while of sparse woods, I notice the tree cover getting thicker and the light growing less with the overhead foliage. It becomes necessary to slow our pace, to ensure we're picking a safe trail through the woods. These are nothing like the forests on Asgard, and I don't want to risk running into any predatory creatures here.

Then again, we're scarier than any normal creature in these woods. It's not those I'm worried about – rather, I'm worried about whatever mutants have been created for this arena.

Tony stops flying once the trees grow thicker, and he now runs alongside us, his iron suit clanking. He is still using the boot thrusters to add power to his step and keep up with us. Veers leads the way, Tony and Peggy in the middle, and I bring up the rear.

We keep running for a while, away from the Gauntlet. I wonder if this area is still patterned on Wakanda, and if so, if the entire arena is also. Normally, I would assume not, since no arena is ever just one thing, but this is the first Infinity Endeavor. Maybe Thanos plans to pattern each Endeavor arena on a particular district.

We'll have to see, I guess.

Eventually, Tony calls for a halt, shutting off his thrusters, and we all stop. Veers and I are not really winded, but Peggy and Tony are both gasping for breath, the latter popping open his face plate. All four of us are drenched in sweat from the muggy heat, trapped in around us by the looming branches. I pull at the neck of my tunic, wishing it was lighter. I can just feel my body temperature elevating and know instinctively it will be impossible to get any sort of sleep here.

"What kind of forest is this, anyway?" Veers asks, brushing her hair back from her face. The blonde strands are limp and damp with sweat, sticking to her neck and ears. My own hair doesn't feel much better, and I realize how long I've allowed it to get recently. I need to cut it back a bit.

"Not a forest," Peggy tells her, in between deep breaths. She's bent over her knees, inhaling like her life depends on it. I guess it kind of does. "A jungle."

"How far does it extend?" Tony asks, wiping his hand over his face. "This can't be the whole arena."

Veers glances up. "I can try flying up, to get above the trees." Before any of us can reply, her body begins to glow and she takes off, maneuvering her way up through the branches. Within a minute, she's disappeared into the foliage.

The three of us wait, Tony and me keeping an eye on each other as if waiting for the other to attack. Peggy sighs on seeing our tense stances but says nothing. She probably knows it wouldn't help.

When Veers reappears, her face is set in a thoughtful expression. Landing, she extinguishes the photon energy emanating from her body and glances around at the three of us. "Okay, from a quick look, the arena is circular – at least, the arena around the Gauntlet. I'm assuming there will be portals to some other areas of the arena." She turns and points in the direction we have been heading, away from the Gauntlet. "Around the perimeter, there's a protective shield, covering the entire area. It looks like the shield's split into six sections, which each correspond with the blasts from the Infinity Stones."

Peggy narrows her eyes. "That's interesting."

Veers nods. "Looks like a lot of carnage down by the Gauntlet itself. Banner, Starr, and the Udaku siblings are cleaning up there. They should start declaring the deaths soon, for it looks like those not already dead have scattered."

"Were you able to determine how many?" I ask.

"Not really," Veers confesses. "I didn't want to stay up too long, for fear of getting Banner's attention. We both saw what he can do in his first Contest."

I nod. He was able to leap to an incredible height in his Hulk form. If he wanted to, he might be able to knock a flying Veers out of the sky, or Tony in his Iron Man suit. "We'll learn soon enough, anyway."

"Anything else?" Tony inquires.

"The trees don't go all the way around the arena," Veers says. "They seem largely confined to just this part, spanning at least two of the sectors. Didn't get to see much more."

That's good enough for now, anyway. We can keep heading toward the edge, keep our distance from the Gauntlet for the moment.

"Banner and Starr won't be easy to take down," Tony says, almost casually, but I can hear the edge in his tone, the sudden tensing in his stance, the way he keeps his fingers spread wide, even though his hands are down by his sides, to leave the palms open and ready to fire if necessary. "I've worked with Banner before, and I should know."

I know what he's trying to say. He's trying to say that neither of us should try going this alone, that we need to stick together. I lift my scepter, plant the butt in the earth. With my free hand, I summon a dagger out of thin air, toss it lazily up into the air, and then make it vanish right before the hilt would land back in my hand. "Any insights into defeating him, then?"

"Two heads are better than one, in figuring that out," Tony points out.

"Four heads," Veers adds, softly, and steps closer to us. "And let's leave it at four."

"I'm good with that if your boyfriend's game," Tony says pleasantly, as Peggy looks from him to me and back again. She has a disapproving look on her face, but she doesn't seem to want to interfere. Or perhaps she knows that Tony and I have to decide this for ourselves.

"I agree," I force out, because I don't agree. I got into this mess in the first place because of alliances. I got too close, I had to save Veers. For whatever reason – whether it was herself that drew me to maneuver both of us into victory, or my desire to find a way to measure up to Thor in Odin's eyes – it came from an alliance. And perhaps, if my previous alliances with Peter and Cassie hadn't ended as they had, I would have sought to save one of them, too.

So I don't want an alliance, I don't want someone I'm going to feel responsible for. Nobody aside from Veers, anyway. Because we've already spoken about what happens in the end. We have no illusions about both getting out this time. Just in trying to get one of us out.

But thanks to my sister – and Tony's good point about Banner and Starr – I have no choice. I'm stuck with this alliance.

"Okay, then," Tony says, and his stance relaxes somewhat. Mimicking him, I try to look more at ease as well, to show my acceptance of this pact. Veers glances at me, and then unclenches her fists, as if having determined that I wasn't going to be attacking Iron Man anytime soon.

We continue on through the woods in single file, Veers in the lead. After walking for a bit, we hear the cannons begin to sound for the initial killings. We stop and listen, counting silently. There's four – one, I know for sure is the female champion from Vanaheim.

"Let's go," Peggy says, when we're sure there are no more cannons to sound. So we keep walking, wondering who died, wondering who will be next.

Whatever it takes, it won't be me.