"Tony!" I let out a shocked squeal into his jacket-clad back as he took a hard left to avoid a ridge that dropped down into the a frozen lake. My hold around him tightened to keep from flying off the side of the snowmobile and down the ravine.
"Sorry sweetheart," his voice flew back to me in a muffled laugh. I squinted against the snow, the rising sun turing everything to a blinding white. Everything blurred passed me at such a fast speed that even behind my ski googles, my eyes still watered. Not a single inch of skin was exposed but the cold still managed to sneak through my scarf and bit the skin of my cheeks. I buried my face deeper into Tony's back to try and get away from some of the wind. Over the roar of the wind in my ears, the sound of three more snowmobiles and an Apache UTV hummed behind me. To my left, Natasha bent her head over the handles of her snowmobile. Her red hair tucked tight into her black hat. On my right, James's metal arm flashed in the sun and caught my eye every time he moved. Steve was somewhere behind me in the middle of Natasha and James. Behind them was the UTV with Sam driving, Clint seated next to him with his bow resting in his lap and his quiver strapped to his back, and Thor was kneeling on the bed of the UTV, holding onto the bars tight to keep from flying off.
"Where's the next turn Lucy?" Tony asked, his scarf muting his voice slightly. I turned my face and leaned my chin against Tony's shoulder to look out across the ridge. All of the mountains looked the same and made it much harder to figure out which peak was which. The path that we were on curved down across the side of the mountain and into the valley below. I carefully released one of my hands and pointed toward the curve of the path.
"Follow the path down into the valley. That should be the path lined with rocks that Johann told us about," I said into his ear. The snowmobile hit a bump of snow and I quickly returned my arm to around his chest. Tony's laugh came out in a puff of smoke that was swiftly knocked away by the wind. Tony steered the snowmobile down the path that led down the side of the mountain. As we started our decent, the compass around my throat pulsed quicker. The decent down the side of the mountain didn't take very long and suddenly we were in the valley between the two mountains. This path wasn't very long until it was flung open with the mountains towering on either side. After a few minutes, small stones began popping up along the boarder of the path. As the path steeped up higher, the stones along side grew in size until they towered over us. The space between the stones disappeared until the stones became almost like a retaining wall. I pressed my cheek to Tony's back and studied the stone wall carefully. There didn't seem to be anywhere for a cave in front of us. Maybe the cave has hidden away somewhere in the rocks around us. Although that didn't seem likely, every stone was tall and smooth with no room for even the smallest stream of water to trickle through. I was beginning to get worried that Fury was right. Maybe I was wasting everyone's time on this mission. Suddenly, up in front of us there was a dark shadow against the rock. As we neared the shadow, I could make out the depth behind it. As we neared the shadow, the pulse jumped to an erratic rate.
"Tony! Stop!" I gasped. Before he could stop, I threw my leg over the side and pushed myself off the snowmobile. My footsteps faltered for a moment before I took off toward space in the wall as fas as I could in the ankle high snow. James cursed as he swerved out of the way to avoid hitting me.
"Lucy!" Tony called after me, pulling the snowmobile to a sudden stop. The others followed him quickly. Their crunching footsteps followed me into the cut in the rock. What I found when I entered the cut was the most amazing thing I'd ever seen in my entire life. I froze in my spot and looked up at it in awe. I slowly pulled the googles off my eyes to get a better look. The inside of the cave was shockingly warm compared to the outside. I slid my gloves off carefully and slipped them into the pocket of my jacket. I pushed my scarf down and took in a deep breath, "Lucy, what the hell-" Tony's sentence dropped off as he ran up to stand next to me. He pulled his googles off and slipped his gloves off. The cut in the rock was actually a deep cave that was carved out of the rocks perfectly. The smooth cuts of the stone were too perfect to be natural. The dull grey of the stone was much nicer in comparison to the blinding white outside. The ceiling towered above us by at least two stories. It managed to catch the light from outside and illuminate the cave so that it was almost disorienting. The cave descended down away from the rocks and into the side of the mountain.
"Well, looks like we're going down," James said from the other side of me. I swallowed hard, suddenly overcome with anxiety of what could be waiting for us at the bottom of this cave. I glanced over at Tony. He shared my nervous look and reached out for my hand. His hand was surprisingly warm in mine. The cave quickly closed around us as we descended down the path. It went from being two stories high, to barely clearing Tony's head. The heroes behind me ducked in order to keep from hitting their head on the ceiling. The light from the entrance of the cave dwindled until it was almost impossible to see more than a foot in front of us. As the path narrowed, I pushed in front of Tony and led the heroes further under ground. I ran my fingers along the jagged edge of the cave wall. The path was maybe four feet across. My elbows were pressed into my sides to accommodate my hands being held out. Tony's hand appeared on my hip and I felt him lean closer to me.
"Lucy, do you think we should be going this far?" he asked.
"I wanna see where this ends. What could be the harm," I said, continuing down the path.
"I can think of a few," Tony muttered.
"If you're nervous, you can wait up at the top," I said. It was quiet for a minute, the only thing telling me he was still there was his hand on my hip. We continued down the path for a long moment. The further down we got in the cave, the warmer it seemed to get. It was another five minutes before anything changed.
"Look, there's a light up ahead," James whispered from further behind me. After a few more steps, the light at the end of the path became distantly visible. My steps faltered for a moment. I hadn't counted on someone actually being down here. Behind me there was a rustle of movement. The cocking of guns, the straining of a bow string, and a rush of metal were muffled from behind me. Tony's hand disappeared from my hip and the dull glow from his glove appeared at my feet. I swallowed my anxiety and continued forward. The closer we got, the more intense the light became. After a few steps, the path was thrown open into a large anti-chamber. The stone walls of this chamber were very different then the entrance. These walls were jagged and a dark brown and cut out harshly from the side. The anti-chamber was a large circle with a slightly raised area that was at the end of the chamber and led further back and out of view. A fire was burning in the center of the chamber. Also lining the walls were torches that burned and snapped peacefully. All this fire made the room alive with light but stifling. Upon first glance, the chamber seemed completely empty; but once I stepped in further, things around the chamber seemed to just appear. Wooden skis leaned leaned against the ledge of the raised area haphazardly and a few hunting bows and spears were handing from a rack on the wall. A white, chalky substance was used to write a mixture of pictures and letters that I recognized from the tablets. I turned around to seek out Thor.
"What is that?" I asked. He was looking around the chamber with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.
"What is what?" Tony asked. I turned to look at him.
"The writing on the walls of course," I said, motioning to the chamber walls. Tony eyed the wall then me carefully.
"Lucy... there's nothing on the walls," he said slowly. I looked back at him confused before breaking out in laughter.
"Quit messing around Tony," I laughed but he didn't flinch. His expression grew concerned and grave.
"Lady Lucy," Thor started. I turned to face him but before he could continue, someone else spoke.
"They cannot see it, my dear," a woman's voice echoed out. I spun around toward the raised portion of the chamber where the voice sounded like it had come.
"Lucy?" Tony started, his voice laced with concern.
"Didn't you hear that?" I asked, going to take a step forward. Tony's hand gripped my arm to keep me in my place.
"Hear what doll?" James asked. I turned to look at him.
"The woman! Didn't you hear her!" I asked, spinning around to try and find one of them that believed me.
"There was no woman, doctor," Steve said. The woman laughed.
"They cannot hear me either dear," the woman said. I turned to look at Thor, hoping he didn't think I was crazy too.
"Thor, please tell me you can hear her," I begged, straining against Tony's hand on me. All eyes swiveled to Thor. He looked over at me, his eyes carefully studying me.
"I can," he said simply. Tony's grip on me dropped.
"Excuse me?" Sam asked.
"Wait, why can only you two hear it?" Natasha asked.
"She is marked by Asgard," Thor started.
"So only Asgardians can see or hear them?" I asked.
"Very good my dear," the woman spoke again, her voice sounding warm.
"Maybe you guy shouldn't be here," I realized.
"It is too late for that min skat," a second woman spoke from the tunnel we'd entered from. I spun to the mouth of the tunnel. A shadow was barely visible from the inside of the tunnel.
"Everyone move away from the tunnel," I ushered frantically. They all looked at each other but before they could have moved, I was flung back from them. I slammed against the rough wall across from the mouth of the tunnel. The rocks bit into my back, through my clothes and into my skin. I gasped out in pain only to find that my lungs didn't seem to want to work. I chocked out, trying to get my lungs to inflate. This sudden jolt shocked the heroes into movement, only to be motioned to stop by Thor. With one look and the swing of his arm, he managed to freeze all motion from the heroes.
"Do not move," Thor instructed.
"But-" Tony started. Thor shot him a harsh glare.
"Do not move," Thor threatened. Tony's jaw clenched and his eyes flicked to me. Suddenly in my vision line, a woman appeared. She was tall and massive, built like a warrior and towered over everyone, even Thor. She had white hair that was pulled back from her face in a tight braid on the nap of her neck. Her eyes were a piercing blue that was striking against her fair, pale skin. She had two blue marks of paint down the left side of her forehead that ended at her eyebrow and another two that traveled across the plane of her left cheek and ended just before her nose and the crease in her mouth. Her mouth was curled back in a wolf-like snarl, baring her teeth at me. Her hand was pressed against my throat, choking all oxygen. I choked and clawed at her hand; the familiar fuzzy black ringing my vision. Flashbacks of the Raft and Kalahan raced through my mind, making me thrash violently from terror. I looked over her shoulder and the only person my vision could focus on was Tony. I tried to form words but only choked gargles came out. Tony was manic with fear. He moved to step forward and was caught by Steve. I was drawn away from the struggle by the woman speaking.
"How can you hear me? How can you see me?" her voice was low and raspy. Tears raised in my eyes and I choked out my response.
"Skaði, let the Midgardian go," Thor demanded. Skaði's face froze and her eyes went to the corners at the sound of his voice.
"Thor Odinson. To what do I owe the pleasure?" she said, her voice still cold.
"I said, let the Midgardian go," Thor's voice dipped down to a frightening level. By now, I was lightheaded and I knew I'd pass out soon. For a moment, no one moved save for Tony, who was still struggling against Steve. Finally, Skaði dropped her hand from my throat. I collapsed from the wall to the floor on my hands and knees. I gagged and gasped in an attempt to try and get any amount of air into my body. My vision began to clear and the ringing in my ears dulled slightly.
"What does the Midgardian mean to you?" Skaði asked.
"She is very important Skaði. Check her hand," Thor said, still on edge. His grip on his hammer tightened and he shifted slightly. I was still leaning on on my hands, trying to remember how to breathe when my right arm was yanked up. I was hovering just slightly above my knees, being held up by my arm. I cried out in pain weakly as my shoulder screamed in pain.
"There is nothing," Skaði said. Thor rolled his eyes.
"The other hand Skaði," he said annoyed. She dropped my right arm and yanked the other one up. I clenched my jaw to keep from crying. I closed my eyes from the pain and tried to pretend I was anywhere else than here.
"The Valkyrie," Skaði breathed.
"Quite and if I were you, I would quit harming my Midgardian, Skaði," a third woman spoke, her voice young but fierce. Skaði quickly dropped my arm and I collapsed to the ground again. I was dropped with so much force that I rolled onto my back. My vision doubled and what little oxygen that I'd gotten back was pushed back out. I felt like a fish dropped on the ground. I pressed the heel of my hand into my chest and forced my gasps to calm down. Suddenly, a red haired, young woman's face appeared above me. Her hair fell in curly waves around her face, effectively softening her face. Parts of her hair were braided in small clumps with elaborately decorated gold beads. Across her forehead was a thick gold band that disappeared on either side of her face into her hair. On either side of her head, two, large, gold wings erupted from her hair. They were beautifully wrought with golden feathers that managed to somehow look weightless on her head. Her green eyes watched me lightly with curiosity and life burning in them. Smeared across her cheekbones, under her eyes, and across the bridge of her nose was a dark black paint like what football players wear. A straight line was drawn down from her nose to the point of her chin, splitting her mouth into equal parts. Just under her bottom lip was a short horizontal line across the vertical one in the same black as was under her eyes. I was still trying to catch my breath when she smiled at me.
"There you are, min læge," she said. She cupped her hand and pressed her hand to my cheek. As her hand met my face, I took a deep breath in. The first one since before I'd been slammed against the rock wall. The black around my eyes disappeared and the ringing in my ears stopped. Not only did that disappear, but so did the full ache in my chest that I'd gotten from the Raft disappeared along with the bruises on my stomach. I stared up at her, completely at a loss of what to say.
"Skuld, always a flare for the dramatic," the second woman spoke from the tunnel again. Skuld smiled at me again and held out her hand to me. Across her arm, I noticed she had dark marks along her arm like I had. She pulled me to my feet and stood in front of me. Standing in front of me, Skuld was taller than me but not nearly as tall as Skaði. A beautifully crafted chest plate covered her entire torso in gleaming gold. Elaborate designs curved around the gold like a fish swimming through a pond. Flowing down from her chest plate was the whitest skirt I'd ever seen. It flowed out to about her mid-thigh in the front and down to her ankles in the back. Hanging off her shoulders-in the same white as the skirt-were flowy sleeves that were also longer in the back than the front; allowing me full view of the runes on her inner arm. On her upper arms and around her left calf, she had gold bands wrapped tightly around her skin. Boots that looked too heavy for me to possibly hope to ever lift, spilled up her shin. I was in awe of her as she stood in front of me.
"Well, everything is dramatic in comparison to the mundane present, Verðandi," Skuld said back. I turned to look over at the mouth of the tunnel. A middle aged woman had appeared in the mouth of the tunnel. Her dress was much less striking then Skuld next to me. She was in a light grey cloak. It flowed down, covering her entire body. The sleeves billowed around her arms and down to her wrists. Her hood was resting against her back, letting her face fully be seen. Fluffy grey hair fell around her face and made her face softer. Light lines crossing her face, aged her face slightly but didn't take away from her beauty. Her blue eyes were deep and full of a wonder I couldn't quite place.
"You both are quite predictable really," the first woman finally spoke again. I turned to look at the ledge where the voice came from.
"Everyone is predictable to you, Mother Urðr," Verðandi said. The first woman finally emerged from the shadows. She was dressed in pitch black; her cloak covering her head to toe, leaving her completely invisible under it.
"Usually true. But my dear Lucy here continues to surprise me," the woman said. I said nothing but was taken aback that she knew my name. Her cloaked head turned slightly toward Thor, "And Thor my child. My how you have grown," she said. Thor bowed his head.
"Mother Urðr," he said with reverence. The hooded head turned and faced the group of heroes, who still hadn't moved. They were a mob of tension, frozen in the corner.
"Ah, and we have company," she said.
"Please don't hurt them," I begged. Urðr laughed.
"Do not fret my dear," she laughed. "We do not mean anyone any harm. But do you not think we should allow them to see what they have been missing?" Urðr asked.
"Yes," I said. She didn't say anything. Her cloaked hands separated from in front of her and raised slowly to her hood. She let it fall from her face. She was the oldest of the three. Her face was lines with wrinkles that softened her face. Her eyes were a deafening black to match her unstreaked, jet hair. A warm smile graced her mouth and made her welcoming. Her eyes moved from me to the group of heroes. She raised her arms slowly at the heroes. Her palms were parallel to the ground, her fingers fanned out slightly. She slowly turned her hands over so the back of her hands was parallel to the ground. The whites of her eyes were engulfed in black and a sudden wind cirlced the chamber. I glanced over at the heroes who still stood in their group near the wall. When the wind subsided, a gasp went through them. They shifted back and everyones eyes went to different places. Steve, Natasha, and Sam were looking between the different goddesses that were standing around the chamber. James and Clint were looking around the cave at the writing that had appeared on the walls around them. Tony was the only one who hadn't moved. His eyes were still locked on me, only moving when he noticed Skuld standing so close to me. He glared at her for a moment before returning his gaze to me.
"Oh, my god," Sam breathed. All their eyes slowly made their way to Urðr on the ledge.
"Thank you, Mother Urðr," Thor said, bowing his head to her again. Urðr smiled over at Thor like a mother to a child.
"My child, what bring you to such a place as this?" Urðr asked, her voice soft and smooth but underneath there was the obvious power. At first, I assumed she was talking to Thor but when I looked over at him, he was watching me. I looked back at Urðr as she watched me, waiting for me to answer her.
"Oh, uh. We were looking for the Soul Gem and this where I was told to look," I said quietly. Urðr nodded her head knowingly.
"We know," Urðr said with a warm smile. The way she sad it didn't make me feel dumb at all. Rather, her voice made me feel warm, almost like I'd done something to impress a parent. I couldn't help but smile back at her.
"If you know, they why'd you ask?" Tony piped up, harshly. I turned on him shocked and slighly worried.
"Tony!" I hissed. He returned my gaze confused and shrugged. Urðr's warm laugh filled the space around us.
"Do not worry my dear. It is quite a valid question. And I would not expect any thing less from dear Anthony," Urðr laughed.
"How do you know me?" Tony asked. Skuld laughed from next to me. Urðr smiled at Tony before drawing her attention back to me.
"And what makes you so sure that you are correct?" Urðr asked. I stared up at her for a moment, not entirely sure what she meant. Then the realization of what she was asking dawning on me. Without breaking eye contact with her, I dug under my collar and pulled out the compass from around my throat. I hadn't realized it but ever since we entered the cave, the compass had started burning. I looked at the compass and found the needle pointing at Urðr. If I moved my hand, it would shift to point at her. I looked up at her.
"The compass told me," I said. Her smile widened and she nodded at me.
"Yes my dear. Very good!" Urðr cooed. I smiled back at her, "Now dear, where do you begin to look for your stone?" Urðr prodded.
"Uh, I'm not sure," I said quietly fidgting with the chain of the compass. Urðr raised an eyebrow at me curiously.
"Look again min læge," Skuld said quietly from next to me. I turned my head to look at her. Over her shoulder, I noticed the chalky writing again. The symbols seemed to almost be vibrating on the wall. If I focused on the wall, I could almost make out what they were trying to say.
"They're instructions," I breathed.
"You are right mother, she is very surprising," Verðandi said from her stance by the tunnel.
"Beg your pardon. With all due respect ma'am, but what exactly is going on?" Steve asked respectfully. Urðr didn't look at him, almost like she hadn't heard him. Skaði and Thor turned to acknowledge him but no one spoke to answer him.
"And what do these instructions say to do, my dear?" Urðr urged. I closed my hand around the compass tight and turned from her to follow the words with my eyes.
"Um, well the beginning is over there," I started, pointing toward where Verðandi stood. Everyone turned to look where I was pointing. Verðandi smiled at me, confirming what I'd said, "Uh, It says: The stone for which you seek is almost within reach. The location will make itself clear to you when it feels you are ready. What you must do first is purify yourself by-" I stopped, terrified by the next words. I turned to look at Urðr, hoping she would tell me that I didn't have to do it.
"But mother, there must be another way," Thor spoke up finally.
"You know there is not," Verðandi said softly.
"The gods have always smiled on a brave woman," Urðr said.
"Yes, but not a reakless one!" Thor's voice rose, slightly hysteric.
"Will someone please fill us in," Sam said. I eyed the fire pit in the center of the chamber. My throat tightened with anxiety. I slowly raised the chain to my head and dropped the compass back around my neck.
"Allfather protect you min læge," Skuld whispered to me, stepping back from me. I took a deep breath.
"They want her to purify herself. In the fire," Thor said finally. By the time the words registered with the heroes, I was already running toward the pit.
"Lucy! No!" Tony yelled. By the time his words made it to me, my first foot was already in the fire. The fire curled up around me like a snake until it engulfed me completely. At first, I felt nothing but then the fire overtook my entire body. When I was fully engulfed in the flames, the fire turned from the dull yellow to a bright green. I closed my eyes and tipped my head back.
"Lucy!" Tony's voice was hysteric. A dull burn started in my feet but it spread rapidly up my body. I let out a pained yelp and clenched every muscle in my body, "Get her out! Someone! She's gonna burn to death!" the rest of his plea was drawn out by pain. High noises of pain escaped my throat. The pain was agonizing but I couldn't move. It was like my feet were cemented to the ground.
"Mother Urðr! This is madness. She is just a girl," Thor said.
"She is not just a girl," Skuld hissed.
"If she is the fated, no harm will come to her Odinson," Urðr assured. Suddenly every sound was drawn out by a familiar voice.
"So we meet again human," the man from when I'd gotten the black marks on my arms spoke.
"Yes we do," I murmured quiet enough for no one else to hear me.
"You have made it far. Further than expected," he said. I didn't respond, just waited for him to continue, "I see you have met the Norns," he said.
"Norns?" I asked. A surge of sound broke behind me but I didn't pay attention to it.
"Skuld, Verðandi, and Urðr," the man said. "They are in charge of the future, present, and the past. They seem to think that you are the fated Midgardian to protect the Soul Gem. I do not know if I believe them but who am I to argue with the Norns. Do you think you are ready to control the gem human?" the man asked.
"Yes," I said.
"Then open your eyes," the voice said. It took me a moment but after a second, I followed the directions. The smoke stung my eyes for a moment before my vision cleared some what, "Look human, what do you see?" the man asked. Everything in the chamber looked the same as it have before but with a slight hazy to it.
"I don't see anything," I said. There was a long pause where so one spoke. As I was waiting for the voice to speak again, I noticed a slight light coming from back behind Urðr, "wait, I see something."
"What do you see human," the voice prodded. I squinted to try and get a better look.
"There's a light," I trained off. A curious tingle ran its way up from my fingers and through my body. I snapped my left hand out. Green sparks flew out of the fire at my sudden movement. One of the spears from the wall vibrated and jumped off the rack. I faced forward and swung my arm around so that is was in front of me. The spear followed my hand and whizzed through the air and into the chamber wall somewhere behind Urðr. I dropped my wrist and the spear clattered the the ground. I flipped my hand over and motioned with my hand forward. A dull rumble went through the chamber and a green light wizzed through the air. As soon as the stone appeared in my hand, the worst pain I'd ever felt tore through me. It felt like someone was tearing me limb from limb as slow as possible. My fingers closed around the stone and I screamed out in pain. The fire underneath me extinguished and I collapsed to the ground below me.