Keira grabbed Natasha's hand and gave it a light squeeze. "See you on the other side, Tasha." Despite the rather tense moment, a smile still painted her lips. At the very least, despite everything going on with the aliens and the Mind Stone, she was surrounded by friends.
"That better be a promise, Key." Natasha could only muster a half-hearted smile, her mind too occupied with the possibility of losing her best friend. But she had kept her word to Keira and focused on keeping her head quiet so Wanda wouldn't know the risk that blowing up the Mind Stone could entail.
On Keira's other side, Steve readied his new arm shields.
These new ones were quite a contrast compared to his old frisbee of freedom. But since he had left that shield for Tony to take back in Siberia, he needed something else to protect himself with. These were just a tad more aggressive rather than defensive, although they could do with some aggression considering what lay ahead of them.
T'Challa shouted a command in Xhosa and the Wakandans lowered their shields. It was no use waiting around for the inevitable impact when they all knew they needed to fight. The king stepped in front of his people, his faith high. "Wakanda Forever!" He shouted and crossed his arms over his chest in an 'X' before they fell to his sides as his mask appeared.
This was the signal they all had been waiting for.
Everybody sprinted forwards with their weapons at the ready. Since they were running downhill, Keira had to concentrate hard on where she put her feet, or she would trip and fall flat on her face, just as Bruce had done before.
War cries filled her ears from every side like music and the effect was incredible. Her brain couldn't come up with a moment where she had ever felt more powerful than she did at this moment. The only thing that might draw her attention away was the prickling in the back of her head, and she did her best to just ignore it.
Steve and T'Challa broke off from the rest of the group since the two of them were some of the fastest on the field. And while Keira could've easily joined them, she wished to try and keep Natasha safe so instead, she matched her pace to the spy's.
Her steps didn't falter when the barrier opened and the aliens came crashing through, although her eyes involuntarily widened at the sight.
They snarled and growled as they climbed over each other in their haste to reach the storming army. Aliens and humans clashed together in the middle of the shallow river, or stream would maybe be a more accurate word to describe the lazily running water.
Natasha, being the expert she was, knew that fighting in water would tire her out much faster so she held back on the sandbank and waited for the aliens to cross the water to come to her. Meanwhile, Keira got caught up in the moment and launched herself into the air, plunging her sword down an alien's neck.
Blood, water, and mud splattered all around her when she landed, forcing her to wipe some of it off her face with the back of her hand. If she had been able to catch a glimpse of herself in the rippling water, she probably would've laughed out loud at the pure disgust etched on her face. But she didn't get time to think much about it and instead swung her sword in an upwards motion just in time to cut off an outstretched limb that reached for her throat.
If Keira had been naïve enough to think that she would be able to keep track of Natasha in the fighting chaos, she was seriously mistaken.
It barely took five minutes before she had lost track of where everyone was, including herself.
All she could see were flailing limbs and flashing teeth. The taste of iron already laid heavy on her tongue, although she wasn't sure if it was her own blood she was tasting or some dead alien's. With her sword slashing through the air, her arms quickly grew tired but she refused to give them rest. Instead, all of her energy went into trying to inflict as much damage as possible to every alien she came across.
After what felt like hours, although in reality, it was more like minutes, the ever-incoming waves of aliens around her seemed to thin for a moment. Taking advantage of the momentary pause, Keira quickly scanned her surrounding to try and locate her some of teammates.
Catching a glimpse of the blond mop of hair that belonged to none other than Captain America himself, she noticed a group of aliens that were charging at him from behind. Keira narrowed her eyes in concentration at one of the rampaging aliens and she had to push down the bile that rose in her throat like a tidal wave as she felt the alien's slimy mind connect with her own.
But even to her own surprise, her plan actually worked.
Instead of attacking Steve, this particular alien just leaped over him and instead attacked its comrades, burying its claws and teeth deep in the grey flesh. When there were no more aliens around him, the last one having sprinted off to attack another of its kind, Steve glanced over at Keira with surprise written all over his face.
He had no idea she could do that. It was a new skill completely but he sent her a thankful nod before whipping around to bury one of his pointy shields in an alien's throat. For the fighting would commence whether he wanted it to or not.
"Wha-" A painful yelp left Keira's lips as sharp teeth pierced the flesh of her lower arm, forcing her focus to break immediately. Just like a dog, the alien pulled her off her feet and shook its head violently, almost succeeding in dislocating her shoulder before she managed to swing her katana around with her other hand arm and slice its head off.
Blue blood rained down over her as she lay panting on the ground, but at the moment, she couldn't care less. "Damn, these aliens suck." She breathed, wiping her unharmed arm across her forehead. Pushing herself into a sitting position, she looked down at the wound the alien had inflicted. The puncture marks were pouring blood, although her blood was thickening by the second, indicating it was healing properly.
Good, because Keira didn't know how much longer she would be able to last if this bite had turned out to be as much of a bitch to heal as the wounds she had gotten back in Scotland.
Up in the lab, Wanda had to squeeze her eyes shut. She could feel Keira's pain as clearly as if it would've been her own, and she wanted nothing more than to fly down there to help her fiancée. But she knew she couldn't abandon their mission. So, instead, she just looked out over the battlefield and tried to send waves of reassurance to Keira via their mental link.
"How much longer, Shuri?" T'Challa yelled over the comms.
"I've barely begun, brother." Shuri answered, clearly stressed by the pressure on her shoulders. But if she tried going faster, then she would risk circuit failures which would take even longer to repair.
"You might want to pick up the pace."
Unfortunately, Keira couldn't say he was wrong. Clambering back to her feet again, she barely was allowed a moment to turn around before another alien threw itself over her. She swiftly sliced its arms off before finally cutting off its head. As her eyes jumped around, she could already tell that the fight wasn't going in their favor.
They were simply outnumbered.
Even with Rhodey and Sam's aerial support at the opening of the barrier, the aliens just kept flooding in. A never-ending wave of ruthless killers.
With all the slicing and dicing she was doing, Keira was grateful that her katana hadn't given up on life yet. It wasn't exactly new, but she was extremely meticulous when it came to cleaning and sharpening it, some might even say she was borderline obsessive with it. But maybe that was why it remained in tip-top shape.
Her brain was still prickling, something she took as a good sign. It meant that Shuri was making progress. And it gave her something else to focus on besides the sticky blood covering her hair and skin.
"There's too many of 'em!" Bruce yelled. Keira had no idea where he was, but judging from the snarling in the background, he was not in a good position.
As if their prayers had been heard by the gods above, a blinding light suddenly shot down at the ground and immediately killed the nearby monsters. Keira's eyes widened in shock when an axe, powered by lightning, came flying out from the beam and she barely managed to duck in time to avoid getting hit by it. The axe flew around, effectively killing multiple aliens as it did so, before returning to the beam whose bright light faded away.
And who stood in the middle of it, if not the God of Thunder himself?
Thor wasn't alone though. He was with the strangest assortment of creatures Keira ever could've imagined. A raccoon holding a machine gun and a walking tree with eyes. Another type of alien or were they something even stranger?
The God of Thunder wasn't looking like he had done the last time she had seen him. He had shed his golden locks for a much shorter hairstyle. Had he had time to go to the barbershop while being lost in space? A wide smile stretched Keira's lips though.
With him on their side, they might actually have a shot at winning this, and it became clear that she wasn't the only one who thought so.
"You guys are so screwed now!" Bruce yelled, laughing hysterically as he did so.
At this, Keira's smile turned into a grimace. One should never take victory for granted. It was the number one rule of war. It's not done until it's over. And yes, while she was being carefully optimistic now when Thor had joined them, she would never say it out loud. That would just jinx things.
As a hand landed on her shoulder, Keira spun around with her blade stopping a mere inch from the other person's neck. "Don't sneak up on me like that!" She exclaimed indignantly, shaking her head in exasperation.
"Just wanted to check that you're still alive." Natasha shrugged, completely unphased by the blade by her throat, pushing the sword away from her throat with a finger.
Keira sighed deeply, a weak attempt to try and calm her racing heart. "Still walking and breathing, so I'd classify that as alive."
"And... the other thing...?" Natasha asked tentatively, squeezing the mutant's shoulder while gauging her reaction carefully.
"Just prickling so far." Keira shrugged before gesturing to the back of her head. It was one of the only honest answers she had been able to give today, and a part of her was secretly grateful that at least one other person except Vision knew the truth.
Her attention was diverted back to Thor, who had started to run, yelling loudly as he did so. "Bring me Thanos!" He leaped into the air, with lightning crackling all around him before he slammed his weapon down into the ground and electrocuted a whole lot of aliens.
With Thor on their side, it seemed like their odds were leveling out.
The god was cutting through the aliens like they were made of butter and his companions also seemed to have a thirst for alien blood, something Keira didn't complain about. They needed all the help they could get.
This time, Keira stayed by Natasha's side as they fought. It was clear that even the smallest distance would cause her to lose sight of her best friend, something she wouldn't allow again. Luckily, they had always worked well together, and that was no exception today. They were like a well-oiled machine, knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses without even trying.
Okoye joined their side as well. And with Keira's katana, Natasha's batons, and Okoye's spear, they formed a very powerful trio.
They took down alien after alien, and it didn't take long before there was a heap of corpses surrounding them, complete with dismembered limbs.
"I don't mean to put any extra stress on you, but please tell me there's been some development, Shuri." Keira panted, having to defend herself onehanded as she had one finger to her comm.
Why the hell had they diverted back to the old-school comms? The ones in Sokovia had been much better because you could just talk straight into them. Lack of equipment maybe? Shaking herself out of her head, she redirected her focus back to the alien in front of her, intent on slicing off all four arms.
"You sure about that?" Shuri asked sarcastically, although Keira could tell she was smiling. "I didn't just pull the number two trillion out of thin air, you know."
"Yeah, sorry. I get told I'm impatient a lot." Keira excused herself, smiling slightly as she heard Shuri chuckle. Her arms and legs were burning, wanting nothing more than to lay down her weapon and go to sleep, but there was no way in hell she would do that.
If her body wanted to give up, it would have to collapse.
"It's true. Don't take it personally." Natasha chimed in with a smirk, earning a playful glare from the mutant.
But both their smiles were wiped from their faces as the ground started to rumble. At first, Keira thought it was an earthquake but when she heard the trees breaking and falling to the ground beyond the dome, she knew this was something different. Whipping around, she could only watch as the ground bulged.
Oh god, please not some weird secret alien weapon.
But her wishes were not granted as something pushed through the barrier underground. The Wakandans clearly hadn't counted on an attack from below surface level. Big metal wheels broke through the earth, high as skyscrapers and decorated with spinning, sharp spikes. They shredded through everything in their path, whether it be aliens or humans.
"Fall back! Fall back, now!" T'Challa yelled over the comms but there was no way that they were outrunning them.
The wheels were too fast, too menacingly in their destructive way.
Too busy with trying to keep the aliens off her and her friends, it felt like no time at all had passed before the huge wheels were in front of her. In pure reflex, Keira stretched out her arms and pulled both Natasha and Okoye tight to her chest before falling to her knees. For the first time since the fight had started, her brain seemed to have pulled itself out of the prickling state and jumped back into action, transforming her skin into diamond.
She seriously doubted that her powers would be sufficient enough to keep them from being shredded alive, but at least they would go out together.
Her only regret would be not being able to see Wanda before that happened.
With her eyes closed and hugging the two women tightly, she braced for an impact that never came. No sharp spikes dug themselves into her back as the rumbling had suddenly gone quiet, Keira whipped around. Her eyes widened in surprise and shock as they landed on Wanda's figure.
The wheels were suspended mid-air, surrounded by a familiar red mist. They almost looked weightless, the way they were floating but as Wanda glanced over her shoulder, the wheels flipped over and crashed into the ground behind her. They slid over the earth, killing hundreds of aliens in the process while saving her friends and her fiancée.
Keira quickly got back on her feet, releasing Okoye and Natasha in the process. The pride burned bright in her chest at Wanda's accomplishment and she couldn't stop herself from jumping into her lover's arms.
Embracing the redhead, Keira nuzzled her nose in the red hair and breathed in Wanda's flowery scent. "Have I ever told you how amazing you are?" She mumbled before pressing a kiss to the side of her fiancée's neck.
Wanda gave an airy chuckle, slinging her arms around the blonde with a smile. "All the time, although I wouldn't mind hearing it more often." Reluctantly, she broke the hug, and her smile couldn't help but widen at the indignant look on Okoye's face.
"Why was she up there all this time?" Okoye questioned, spinning her spear around once in pure annoyance.
Getting back into the fighting, Keira could only manage a half-hearted shrug. "It's called dramatic effect." She smirked while cutting off some poor alien's limbs. But her focus was taken from her as the pain in her head suddenly spiked, which caused her to be knocked to the ground.
Sharp teeth flashed dangerously close to her face and the only reason why Keira didn't lose her head was because she had managed to block the alien with her sword. With both hands, she pressed the katana upwards, desperately trying to push the creature off her.
But the sharp edge of the sword wasn't pressing against the alien's neck, no it was pressing down into her palm. She couldn't hear anything except the alien's snarling, but within seconds, the creature went limp. A grunt left Keira's lips as its whole body weight fell on top of her but it was quickly pushed off her.
"Something's wrong." She muttered as she was blindly pulled up to her feet. The world was spinning slightly, but she blinked rapidly and it came back into focus again. By the flowery scent in her nostrils, and the firm hand around her waist, she could tell that it was her beloved Wanda that had pulled her up from the soggy ground.
"Guys, we got a Vision situation here." Sam urgently informed them over the comms.
Steve's panting breath answered him. "Somebody get to Vision." It sounded like the supersoldier was getting a run for his money.
"Go." Keira ran a hand over her face, trying not to gag at the sticky feeling that lingered on her fingers. She weakly tried to push Wanda away, not wanting to explain how she knew that something had been off before it had even happened. "Go, Wan."
Wanda didn't budge, but kept her grip around Keira's waist, even though the mutant seemed to become steadier by the second. She was reluctant to leave, but after a glance around, she decided to obey the blonde.
After all, the Stone was the mission. She could question Keira later. Walking up the sandy hill, she pressed a finger to her comm. "On my way." But she barely got the chance to move more than a few steps before she was hit hard across the face, causing her to topple down the hill she had just climbed.
Keira wheeled around, and she immediately realized it was the same alien they had fought in Scotland.
"He'll die alone. As will you." The blue-haired alien said while leaning over Wanda, her sword slowly dragging across the ground, getting closer to the redhead with every passing moment. She wasn't yet aware of the presence of an ex-assassin and a mutant behind her.
"She's not alone." Natasha stated calmly, and slowly, almost too slowly, the alien turned around to face them.
Keira could feel herself shaking from suppressed rage and she tilted her head to the side. "Get your hands off my wife before I cut them off." She snarled before launching forwards, her katana over her head. No one put their hands on Wanda on her watch.
At first, it seemed like Keira might be winning. Her sword slashed across the alien's skin, splattering her in blue blood. Once or twice, her blade even skimmed the alien's face. But the longer the fight went on, the more obvious it became that her head was starting to distract her.
The blue-haired alien was getting more and more hits in, and after a powerful punch to her temple, Keira keeled to the ground.
Before the alien could deliver the killing blow, however, Natasha swooped in and pulled the alien's attention away from Keira. Alongside Okoye, the two of them fought the alien, slowly boxing her in but as one of the spinning wheels flew over their heads, they were temporarily distracted. All of them ducked, not wanting to be decapitated.
But this gave the alien the advantage she needed and she swiftly knocked the two humans to the ground.
In the meantime, Keira had managed to drag herself closer to Wanda, but as she fought to get back on her feet, her attempt was rudely interrupted as a stabbing pain shot through the lower part of her right ribcage. But glancing down at her stomach, no blood was pooling there. It wasn't her pain.
Vision.
So this is how he had felt when she had been attacked in Scotland? God damn, it sucked. A swift kick to her shoulder pulled Keira out of her head and forced her back down to the ground.
The blue-haired alien towered over her, pressing her down into the dirt. "Told you that you wouldn't be alive once I was through with you." The alien hissed, revealing a hidden dagger up its sleeve. The blade stopped a mere inch from Keira's neck and she saw those dark orange eyes widen in shock.
Engulfed in red mist, the alien could do nothing as she was lifted into the air, straight into the pathway of a wheel. Sand and debris rained down on them as Natasha pushed herself up on her elbows. "That was really gross." She panted, blue splatters of blood decorating her face and vest.
Keira clumsily clambered to her feet and stumbled over to Wanda, pressing a thankful kiss to the woman's temple before pulling her up. "You need to go help Vision. He needs protection more than ever now." The pain in the lower part of her ribcage wasn't as painful as it normally would've been, but it was still taking all her strength not to double over.
But Wanda shook her head. "Not until you tell me what's going on." Placing a hand on Keira's cheek, she urged the mutant to meet her gaze. Never before had she been so tempted to take a look inside her fiancée's mind without permission.
"Wanda, please. We don't have time. That Stone needs protection now. Not in ten minutes, not in an hour. Now." Keira pressed, forcing herself to meet the emerald eyes. Seeing the stubborn expression mirrored there, an exasperated sigh left her lips. "Please, I'll tell you all about it once we have protected the fate of the universe, okay?" Placing her hand over Wanda's she gave it a reassuring squeeze, silently praying that her fiancée would accept her words.
A war was raging inside Wanda's head.
She knew the Stone was the priority, she knew that. But Keira's behavior was off. Way off. And she didn't like it one bit.
But Keira was right about one thing. They needed to save the universe. So, in the end, she forcefully pushed her worries to the side. "Promise?"
"Promise." Keira nodded and stole a quick kiss from her fiancée's lips before pushing the redhead away from her. She watched the red mist form around Wanda's hands as the redhead took to the skies.
If I'm still alive after this, I promise, I will tell you everything.
Meanwhile, Thor had proved himself to be a more than capable ally, and with his help, they had even driven the aliens to retreat. But the god wasn't going to let that happen. With his axe in hand, he flew around and destroyed the ships that were trying to lift off, and destroying those already in the air.
"Don't look at me like that, Tasha. Please." Keira sighed, finally letting some of the pain show on her face. But another spike of pain surged through her head, and she clutched her head. It was a child's wish that the pain would subside if she applied enough pressure to her temples.
Fingers closed around her wrists and gently pried her hands away from her face. Her eyes were still closed shut as it felt like someone was poking needles into her brain.
"What's going on?" Natasha's worried voice asked, keeping her firm grip on the mutant's wrists.
But before Keira got a chance to speak, Steve answered for her. "Everyone, on my position. We have incoming."
Taking a deep, steadying breath, Keira snapped her eyes open. "That. That is what's going on."