Strike
Jord’s order to stay back made Steve admittedly a bit anxious, but there were people in the city still, and he was not at full strength, so he obeyed, mostly. He and Pietro cleared the few remaining people from the city before approaching where Thor and the others were confronting Chthon. The being appeared to have recognized Jord, though he was calling her Gaea.
Thor spotted Steve and Pietro while he was sweeping the perimeter of the immediate area. They’d stopped Chthon in a small plaza, Gaea facing him straight on with Odin and Loki flanking the sides. “You both should move back.”
“Why? What could happen here? That is my sister.” Pietro didn’t appear intimidated in the least by Thor.
“And she should be okay. She is very powerful. But these are magics that could get messy for the bystander. Even I am keeping a little distance.” Thor glanced at Steve and Pietro before looking back at the plaza.
“I don’t think I can move further away. I need to be here for her.” Pietro’s gaze was pretty well fixed on his sister.
“I’m not sure I can either. The city is cleared. How long have they been standing off?” Steve shrugged looking a moment at Thor before letting his gaze keep scanning their surroundings.
“Not long. Jord wanted to be cautious on the approach, and I made certain the immediate area was clear of people. If you will not move back, then stay with me.” Thor positioned himself to act as a shield if anything came their way.
Steve still carried his shield though, and Pietro could move out of the way of just about anything, but they both seemed to allow Thor to stand slightly in front if that was what allowed them to stay and observe. The plaza almost seemed calm, as Chthon and Gaea exchanged words. Gaea asking Chthon to not make this difficult, and Chthon speaking almost wistfully of eons past before a blast of red came off Wanda’s body. But it did not fill the plaza, much less reach them as swirls of green and gold and white mingled with the red.
As Steve gasped, he heard Pietro do the same almost simultaneously. It was hard to tell what was happening, there were words in languages Steve did not know, and swirls of color and only hints of movement from the beings from which the colors emanated.
Time felt suspended, or perhaps drawn out, Steve wasn’t quite sure. But eventually the swirls subsided. The red flickered out and the others pulled back. Pietro was in the center of the plaza over Wanda’s body before Steve or Thor could think to do anything other than follow.
Gaea moved close and put a hand to Wanda’s head. “She will recover. Give her a little time to rest.”
Thor stopped to check first on Loki, and then his father, while Steve proceeded to Pietro and looked at Gaea “She will?”
“She will.” Gaea nodded.
“And what possessed her is gone?” Steve looked around and wobbled slightly before feeling Gaea’s hand grip his arm and steady him.
“Well, he is contained again as he was before. I am sure he is looking for another path through already. But there are other matters to attend.” Gaea’s hand slid up to Steve’s shoulder and he felt her stare deep into him again. “You all should rest a little while. Even for non mortals, this has been a weary day and the sun is only just beginning to break against the horizon in this part of the world.”
Steve found himself only able to nod in response. Pietro rushed Wanda back to base camp to be tended and Steve followed along behind Thor, Odin, and Loki as they made their way back. He wasn’t quite sure where Gaea had gone.
When they arrived back at the base the team from the castle was returning as well. Sam had seen the burst of colors from the mountainside and inquired as to what happened. They talked for a while as Steve was curious about what was in the castle and what they’d recovered from there. The sun was decidedly up and the morning was beginning to charge toward midday by the time Steve laid down to try to rest for a little bit.