BODY ARMOR [Currently Editing]

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 11 [ᴇᴅɪᴛᴇᴅ]

"ᴘᴀɪɴ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴜꜰꜰᴇʀɪɴɢ ᴀʀᴇ ᴀʟᴡᴀʏꜱ ɪɴᴇᴠɪᴛᴀʙʟᴇ ꜰᴏʀ ᴀ ʟᴀʀɢᴇ ɪɴᴛᴇʟʟɪɢᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ᴅᴇᴇᴘ ʜᴇᴀʀᴛ. ᴛʜᴇ ʀᴇᴀʟʟʏ ɢʀᴇᴀᴛ ᴍᴇɴ ᴍᴜꜱᴛ, ɪ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ, ʜᴀᴠᴇ ɢʀᴇᴀᴛ ꜱᴀᴅɴᴇꜱꜱ ᴏɴ ᴇᴀʀᴛʜ."

- ꜰʏᴏᴅᴏʀ ᴅᴏꜱᴛᴏᴇᴠꜱᴋʏ

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Chapter 11

Scene One

11 Years Prior

"How magnificent you are, my darling Sage, genuinely an otherworldly creature, eternal of this planet. You shall live on after me, past devastation and peace. Beyond this earth... Forever." As flames raged around their bodies, the only warmth the young child felt amongst the heat was the feeling of her mother's hands encompassing hers. "I don't want to live forever, I just want to live with you, mother," She wept uncontrollably, her tears barely reaching her cheeks before vanishing into thin air. Smiling humbly, the woman's eyes twinkle with pure love and adoration as she takes in the image of her only child one final time. "Rest easy my daughter. I will be with you always."

"Oh mother," The girl wept, squeezing her mother's limp hands firmly. It was obvious to her that this was the end. There was no getting out of this scenario, and no one was coming to save them from the looming devastation that awaited just around the bend. The humble smile coating Gaia's cracked lips slowly faded into an inexpressive line, as did her eyes, which lost their twinkle. As the fires raged, the young child's lips pressed softly against her mother's warm skin for a few moments. A few of her tears managed to drip onto her hand. "I will search for you in every lifetime until we finally stay," She mumbles, with heartbreak gripping her words. Blowing past her shoulders, a sudden cold breeze swirled around their bodies, not only subduing the raging fires surrounding the child but along with it, whisking away her mother's soul, which lingered within her lifeless body.

As she watched the winds flutter away. Along with the remains of her life, and the only person she had loved in the world, her tears couldn't help but choke her. The realization of loneliness had suddenly set in and a raging anger had bubbled up within her stomach, shooting up through her throat and erupting through her lips. An ear-curdling scream pierced through the atmosphere, expressing the insurmountable grief and anguish she had been filled with. "I... I'm sorry mother... This is my fault," She chokes out, barely being able to contain her sobs. Suddenly, unbeknownst to her, a strange presence had found its way amongst her mourning, looming over like a shadow. Bright red eyes pierced past pitch blackness, as hands reached out towards the child, with claws so sharp they could rip your heart out. As they grew closer, the more unsettled the child suddenly began to feel, until those fearful palms took a whole of her shoulders.

"Sage!"

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Scene Two

[ Avengers Base]

[3:20pm]

"Sage!?" Wanda's panicked voice hisses, finally breaching Sage's eardrums. Sage finds herself gasping for air after being startled awake. Her eyes are flooded with tears, which fall onto her cheeks the moment she blinks. They scurried to remote and intimate corners of her bedroom, her eyes like those of a deer in headlights. Everything appeared strange to her at first, especially the woman dangling in her peripheral view. Wanda's eyes flare up with astonishment as Sage darts away from her, leaving a noticeable gap between them. She couldn't help but feel upset by the woman's behavior at first. She naively believed it was due to their differences, but it was actually due to Sage's muddled thoughts.