rekindledtitan | Excerpt 010: Hero's Return

Entry tags:

Excerpt 010: Hero's Return

TYPE: Personal log

LOCATION: Earth, The Last City

PARTIES: Five[5]. One [1] Ghost-type, [1] Guardian-type, designate Blaze-37, Titan-Class

rekindledtitan , One [1] Unconfirmed, designate Rogers, Steve

juststeverogers , One [1] Asgardian, designate Odinson, Thor

pirateangelbaby, One [1] Guardian-type, designate Ming, Jie, Titan-Class

ASSOCIATIONS: Multiversal Nexus; Infinity War; Blaze-37; Asgard; Rogers, Steve; Odinson, Thor; Stormbreaker; Mjolnir;

She said they were coming straight there, but you can't teleport straight into the City. There's protection in place against ships warping in overhead, protection that they've found out extends to PINpoints. That, and the quarantine protocols in place concerning the Nexus. All it means is that they have to PIN into Blaze's tiny ship before they drop out of orbit. Ghost's at the controls as soon as they materialize. There's just enough space in the cabin to lay Steve out on a fold-out workbench and fit his friends too. Blaze mutters something to herself about needing a bigger ship as she slides into the pilot's chair.

There's not much to see, at first. It's just Earth, and they're dropping toward the night side. In fact, there's nothing to see. No glittering constellations of light from below; no cities and spiderwebbed roads blazing through the small hours. This is a hushed world, an Earth far removed from the one they've just left. And yet, Blaze keys the comms and informs Tower control they're coming in with a guest and someone replies with landing protocols, so clearly there is life here. Somewhere beneath the clouds ahead, as they drop into atmosphere with a jolt and a rumble of building resistance against the hull. Nothing to worry about. The little jumpship is rough and sparse, but it's sturdy, and the inertial sinks keep the turbulence to a mere tremble of deckplates under their feet.

Even while the clouds ahead get denser and more ominous. Thor will feel the approaching storms in a way even the Striker in the pilot's chair cannot. Feel, perhaps, something beyond them, quiet but vast. For Blaze, though, the buffeting of their ship and the lightning flash that illuminates the cabin are as good as a welcome home. There are glimpses of the snowy peaks below, a steep wall of ice and snow to match the swirling barrier above. She keeps a hand on the controls and urges them through the tempest. Into the sudden silence and the clear air of their destination. Ahead of them-

It looks like a moon, miles across, its smooth silver-white surface glowing softly. Its pale light can almost be felt, subtly, the influence of a power great and gentle- and dormant, for now. It hangs suspended within the eye of the storm system, poised between the mountains. In the valley beneath lies a city, glittering with life, towers rising up as if to touch the silent orb above. They'll have time for a glimpse, but they're dipping down, heading over urban sprawl and farmlands, to the massive city wall.

"We're almost there," Blaze says over her shoulder. "Welcome to the Last Safe City on Earth." This is what Steve will be fighting for. The whole of humanity gathered into one last sanctuary. She looks up at the Traveler as they bank around to land, and though she's not a mystical sort she prays, in this moment. Please be listening. Choose him. Give him your blessing. There's no-one better, I swear to you.

Don't let this be for nothing.

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It's usually preferable to connect the Bifrost between spots in the open air, but Thor has learned that the rules are different when one has a PINpoint enfolded into the very fabric of one's weapon. Stormbreaker deposits them onto the tiny ship with the usual flash of brilliant rainbow light, but without tearing through the roof, as Hofund would have done even in Heimdall's far more skilled hands.

It's a good deal more cramped in here than he'd been anticipating, but fortunately Blaze is of a height with himself so he doesn't have to duck to stand up. Still, there's something subtly disquieting about the small space, though he can't quite put his finger on what's bothering him. With space at such a premium, he finds a place to stow his axe for the time being, and comes to stand behind the pilot's chair as the small ship makes its descent.

Some might fear that the storm may cause the ship to crash, that the lightning may do a greater damage to them than they are prepared for. Thor is not sure he could ever fear a storm, whether he was the one to call it forth or not. The wind sings in every breath he takes, the thrum of thunder in his blood, and if anyone was sparing the effort to look closely, they might see an echo of the lightning deep in the blue of his eyes. Even through the metal skin of the ship's hull, he can feel the storm's call to him, held at bay by whatever shields their city.

And beneath that...

Thor can't help but lean forward a little, as if he doubts his eye, his metal hand grasping the back of Blaze's pilot seat to keep himself steady. He has seen many moons of all sorts, planets in orbit so close to one another that their surfaces all but kiss, tricks of gravity to keep them from tearing each other apart. What he sees now is something else, something he doesn't recognize, something very much not of Earth. Not the Earth he knows, at least.

He nearly asks the city's name as they come in for a landing, but with a title like that, he supposes it doesn't matter. He likely wouldn't recognize it anyway, even if they knew. Instead he tilts his head slightly, watching the ground get closer and closer, a hidden jewel beneath the strange alien moon nestled in the mountains. "That's quite a title," he says instead.

"It sure is." The Guardian almost chuckles. "That's why everyone just calls it the City." In this day and age, there's no longer a risk of confusion. Something she had to adjust to, in her first days. Blaze drags her eyes back down as as they angle toward one of the great watchtowers built into the city wall. They're mingling with other traffic, sub-orbital City transports and other jumpships alike, none of them very big. And not many of them, at this early hour.

She has to drag her eyes down from the orb dominating the sky as they come about, but she nods toward it. "And that's the Traveler. Our protector. Patron, I suppose. The source of our Light. Creator of the Ghosts."

Her own doesn't look up. He's in the back, hovering silently over Steve's body. Keeping watch, and aching for the fact there is nothing else he can do for his friend.

"We'll land at the Tower. Guardian Headquarters," Blaze adds. Not that it's hard to guess their destination, from the number of ships coming and going ahead of them. Or the giant gun batteries atop the tower and mounted along the Wall, clearly designed to bring down large warships at a distance. Sanctuary is not easily bought. But pennants flutter above the stern stonework, red and blue in the first hints of dawn light, and there's a glimpse of courtyards and plazas before they dip down to the hangar. It may be a fortress, but it's not made of unfettered militarism.

His eyebrows shoot right back up toward his hairline as he considers the strange sphere anew. "Sentient?" Humans have been known to worship the strangest things before, but he'd like to think these ones are a little beyond idols and natural phenomena. Besides, that sort of placement is not an accident, and if they did not place it there, who did?

The design may not be similar, but the sight of turrets bristling over the City reminds him of Asgard, at least a little. Fresh on the mind, since he was there again only today, the weight of Mjolnir at his hip reminding him that it was not a dream. "It's impressive," he says, peering here and there as they pass ships and structures both. "I'm guessing you don't get visitors terribly often."

"Sentient," Blaze confirms, "but sleeping. Or dead. Words like that get real fuzzy where it's involved. but that's why you're here." She swings them easily into a flight path toward the landing cradle where they've been directed. Today isn't a day for going through the hangar anyway. Too many people. Too much noise.

"Not friendly ones," she answers Thor. "Don't worry, though. You won't be the weirdest-looking thing to show up at the Tower." Not to say he won't draw eyeballs, though. An imposing Norse god with an eyepatch, a mechanized arm and an axe that could cleave clean through a Hive knight? No Guardian's going to miss that walking by.

Especially not their Vanguards. They angle down toward a wide open plaza at the back of the Tower's peak, glimpsing green lawns and red-leaved trees before they dip down to a couple of levels below. Blaze spots a familiar figure in white plate watching from the railing above, and grunts to herself.

"Might be a welcome party when we disembark. Won't be a problem. Worst they'll do is make a fuss, but they won't start a fight." She thinks, at least. The ship settles into the berth, automated dock latching on and securing the little craft. Blaze shoots a look over her shoulder at Steve, up at Thor. "Would you like to take him?"

"Huh." If he had the energy, and they had the time, he'd want to ask for further details. Where it came from, what it wants, how they communicated with it before it... went to sleep. But it's been a very long day already, and they have much more important business ahead of them. Thor turns his head to look back at the shrouded body, Ghost keeping silent guard over it, and despite knowing what they're here to do there's still a pang of grief at the reminder that Steve is gone.

It had long been habit for Thor to greet the gatekeeper of Asgard whenever he'd returned from a quest, so the news that they may be welcomed at the dock seems normal to him. He hesitates, though, when Blaze asks who should carry the body, aware that it's absolutely absurd to worry that he might hurt his friend.

Steve is dead. He won't feel any of this.

"I can do that," he answers, rather quiet. There are too many friends he's lost and not been able to give them their rites, or even see the bodies off properly. If this works, and Steve returns to them a Guardian renewed, then this will not be the last thing that Thor may do for his friend. But if it is, and this is Steve's final fate... Thor would not let him be carried to his rest by anyone else.

With Mjolnir on his hip and Stormbreaker secured against his back, he bends to lift Steve as gently as he would a living person, struggling against the lump in his throat at how lifeless and cold the body is. But he can control himself well enough to make it through this, and he nods to Blaze, prepared to follow her lead.

Their mission has already taken Steve so far from his friends. It feels right that Thor do this. Ghost backs away as the Asgardian picks up their fallen comrade, Blaze settling the ship and rising to join them. At a nod from her, Ghost activates the transmat, depositing the little group outside the ship, in a stone hallway that leads further into the Tower. There’s a comparatively skeletal robot with a an elongated disk-like head monitoring the dock; it chirps a ”Welcome back, Titan,” at Blaze, but she’s looking down the hall, striding forward to meet the Guardians coming their way. Leading them is another armored soldier, broad-faced and dark-haired, his plate armor colored green and white, like the patterned shell of the Ghost at his shoulder.

“Blaze! It’s been a while.” His tone is friendly enough, despite the rifle and launcher slung at his back. He lifts a hand in a greeting salute; Blaze returns it, eyes flicking over his backup. Flanking him is a tall, cloaked woman with blue skin, and a Warlock in his long grey coat, face hidden behind an environment hood. Neither is as interested in the Exo as they are in Thor, and the burden he bears.

“Jie.” Her greeting is sober. “I wondered who was going to intercept us.”

“Zavala gets nervous when you say you’re bringing visitors home,” he answers, his big Titan pauldrons making the accompanying shrug all the more expressive. His cheerful expression has faded at her uncharacteristic tone, eyes drawn to her listless Ghost, the stranger with her… “The rest of us are just…”

“It’s Steve,” Blaze says, seeing it in his face the moment his eyes fall on the shroud. She steps aside, gives him a moment to draw breath before she goes on. “This is Thor Odinson, who fought beside him. He’s come here as a friend. To help us bring Steve home.”

“I’m sorry.” It takes a moment, but he looks up at Thor and gives a slow, somber nod. Yes, he can see that this might get complicated and he’s going to have questions, but- not now. A good man has fallen. “He went down fighting?”

With his hands full, Thor can't greet them as he otherwise would, and settles for nodding in return, bowing his head respectfully. Seeing Steve to his rest - or his rebirth - is more important than decorum and matters of state, and these people don't strike him as the type to stand on ceremony when there's action to take.

"He did," he confirms without hesitation, and his unmistakable pride in his voice despite the sorrow. "He fought to the last with Mjolnir in one hand and shield in the other. I would have expected no less of him." He can glean enough from context to understand that they know Steve already, what kind of man he was. He will not have to explain why.

"Mjolnir?" The Warlock's face is hidden, but his voice is curious and doubtful in equal measure. "Really?" Blaze shoots him a brief look and simply gives an emphatic nod. They can question her about it later. Better than bothering Thor to satisfy their curiosity at this of all times.

The other Titan, meanwhile, stands straighter to salute Thor. He's heard, too, but questions about the Asgardian are pushed aside by the weight of sorrow and concern he's brought. The work that lies in front of them. "That brings me comfort to hear. I am Jie Ming. Steve... used to train with my teacher and I."

"And he will again." Blaze steps forward, shoulders set and eyes glowing. Ghost glides along with her, shell spinning rapidly. "That's why we brought him here."

They can all follow her meaning. The Warlock stares. The Hunter's eyes glint like distant stars. Jie opens his mouth to ask if she's sure about this... then meets the Exo's gaze and shuts it. He glances at Thor. Then, slowly, he nods, expression turning thoughtful. Beside him, his own Ghost locks optics with Blaze's in silent communication.

"We have unused rooms on the west face of the Tower," he says, turning to lead the way. The other two glance at each other, then stand aside. "We'll find one for him." And then... what happens, will happen. The Light will find its way. Behind him, Blaze looks to Thor with- less triumph, than satisfaction. They're in, and nobody will stand in their way now.

Thor's assumption is not that he doubts Mjolnir is real, or accessible to Steve during the battle. The hammer is on Thor's hip, after all; no, he assumes he doubts Steve's worthiness, and Thor's chin raises slightly in defensive defiance. "Yes, really."

Now is not the time to argue about this, though, and the other Titan's commentary is a welcome direction to take the conversation instead. He'll have to hear his stories later, since Steve will not recall them regardless of what comes. Thor inclines his head in response, and stands all the straighter when Blaze reveals their purpose here. If they want to argue otherwise, Thor is ready to back her up. Even if it means an actual fight, no matter how tired he is. They did not come all this way for nothing.

It's a relief that it doesn't come to that, of course. He doesn't relax his guard, however, carrying the body with the dignity that Steve deserves as he follows, keeping pace with Blaze. "Thank you."

In their world it’s not unusual for weapons to bear honoured names, nor for Guardians themselves to adopt monikers of ancient renown. A weapon named Mjolnir is only interesting; a man named Thor is unremarkable; the fact that potential shifts and dances through the air around him is surely noteworthy. Put all those things together and it becomes blatantly obvious that they’re looking at more than an extremely dedicated homage. The quieter Guardians let Blaze and her guest pass, but the Warlock peers close as they do, only to jerk back suddenly.

“This was not in the file,” he murmurs to the Hunter.

She tilts her head, her pale shining eyes tracking over the passing stranger and his weapons. “Cool.”

“Does Tarana know?” Jie’s asking. Blaze exchanges a look with her Ghost and shakes her head, looking suddenly a little bit sheepish.

“Didn’t think of it. We went straight to- hn, secure him.”

Jie glances back at her for that, perhaps because she sounds troubled by it. They head down the hallway, past a technician in grey cap and uniform stacking boxes in a cubbyhole of shelving. There’s another frame sweeping the steps they climb up to an open concourse. To the right the uppermost floors of the North Tower rise above them; the left overlooks the Traveler and the living City beneath. A cloaked Guardian sits perched on the railing; by the sound of it, he’s tuning an instrument with strings. Beneath woven canopies there are piles of cushions, couches set around braziers where a few people – civilians, mostly – are seeking respite from the chilly air while they gather for a meeting. Somebody’s pouring out smoky tea, the scent wafting past Steve’s small escort as they head toward the doors at the end of the concourse. They pass more technicians, and a few more Guardians, fussing with weapons or chatting over ramen or talking to the old lady setting out embroidered swatches of fabric in her small shop.

Anyone who takes notice of them turns to watch, or stands out of their way. The civilians, perhaps, take more notice of the shrouded figure Thor bears; the Guardians’ attention lingers on the god himself, and his armament. There’s a deeply somber air about the group- somber, but not tragic. They still have reason to hope.

Jie hits the button to call the elevator at the end, then looks back at Thor. He speaks quietly. “You know nothing is guaranteed, right? The Traveler’s blessing isn’t ours to give.”

“Or withhold,” Ghost says, very softly.

"Tarana?" Thor asks Blaze, a quiet aside. Whoever it is sounds like another person that Steve has befriended, or perhaps just someone that Blaze should have asked before bringing him here. But either way, what's done is done; they are here now.

He turns his head to take in their surroundings as they go, though he's careful not to lose track of what he's here to do. It seems quiet and peaceful here, a haven that's been made a home. Thor would not have abandoned their mission here if it was not, but it's good to see regardless. He hopes it can be a sanctuary for Steve, once he awakens.

If he awakens.

For that is still in question, isn't it? Thor nods once when Jie reminds him of this, looking no less determined, no more doubtful. "I know. But he will still be no less dead than if we didn't try." And that's really the crux of the argument, as far as Thor is concerned. If all they can offer Steve is a chance, then one chance is better than none. "If it's not his fate, then Valhalla is still open to him." It's the one thing that gives him comfort, knowing that the friends that he has lost today have earned their place in the golden hall. And together, if there is any mercy in the universe.

"Their teacher," Blaze explains, equally quiet as they walk. She doesn't care about the attention they draw- the Tower is home, and like all homes it's close-knit despite the number of people who dwell here off and on. People notice things. Far as Blaze is concerned, that's harmless.

Jie relaxes a bit once it's clear Thor knows the score and understands it. Defying death is their stock in trade, but it's a mindset that lends itself to dark pathways. He's not totally convinced Blaze is prepared to accept the other outcome, but you fight what's in front of you. He'll help them try.

After all, he hopes they're right too.

"If anyone deserves to go there, he does," he replies to Thor as they step inside the elevator. It's spacious enough for cargo and armored warriors alike, and their escort slip lightly in behind them, politely silent. Jie turns aside to murmur to his Ghost about the room they want, and Blaze settles at Thor's other side, keeping close to Ghost who's keeping close to Steve.

"Tarana Parvin's guarding the Nexus right now," she elaborates, once the doors are closed and they begin to drop. "She'll come. She knew him from- I brought Steve here before he joined the army. Before he was, heh, Captain America." A hint of affectionate amusement at that, now turned bittersweet. The Exo's arms are folded; she doesn't know where to look so she stares a hole into the elevator wall while she tries to straighten her head out. Things need to be done, now. But she hadn't exactly planned all this out. Get Steve safely to the Tower. Defend his presence against all objections.

That's as far as she got.

The weight of the lifeless body in his arms does little to diminish the memory of Steve in his final hour, Mjolnir singing in his hand as he dropped blow after hefty blow on the Mad Titan, the heavy scent of ozone tracing his path across the battlefield. If Thor dies an old man, he is not sure he will ever forget the sight, nor will he ever see its like again. "Yes," he agrees, that quiet pride still in his voice. No one else will ever use the hammer to slay another foe once it's returned to its proper time, and if Steve Rogers was Mjolnir's last master, even Thor's ego is satisfied with the honor.

Valhalla could ask for no finer warrior at its table.

There is a part of Thor that was hoping that there would be a suitable Ghost to greet them when they'd arrived, or that at any moment, one might appear and revive the fallen soldier in Thor's arms. But miracles are never promised, and he has learned enough of patience that he can wait as long as it takes. Even if it never does.

Another person who knew Steve before the serum. There do seem to be a surprising lot of them, and Thor looks down at the shroud in his arms as a thought occurs. "He won't remember any of that either, will he?"

"No." Blaze looks up at Thor, drawn from the thoughts she's wrangling. "It's as clean a slate as you can get." Not entirely clean, never that, and certainly not for the man who was Steve Rogers. Which reminds her that of all the people she needs to talk with, Thor's at the top of the list. Getting their friend resurrected is only the first part of her- their task. They'll have to look out for him, after.

It's also why Ghost hasn't stopped silently mourning between them. He, too, is saying his goodbyes. He's still hovering close as the elevator lets them out several floors down and Jie leads them down a flight of steps, through a decoratively tiled archway and down the hallway beyond. It's quieter down here, lights flicking on as they pass by locked doors and little alcoves decorated with war trophies, banners, small sculptures.

"He'll have to figure out a lot of things from scratch," Blaze says as they walk, Jie and his whirling Ghost in the lead. She shoots a look sideways at Thor. "Who he is. Even his name."

It will probably take a while for this all to truly sink in. Everything happened so fast. The heist, the battle, the rush to claim Steve's body before it could be taken away for burial. A chance for hope dangled in front of Thor, so quickly clung to after months without any.

He doesn't regret this choice. But understanding what it truly means, well, that's a different matter.

Thor frowns a little at her reminder. He'd known that, of course, at least in the most abstract sort of way. It hasn't quite occurred to him to think of how different his friend may be, without his memories to shape him. Without the pain and loss, the camaraderie and triumphs. "But he will have friends to help him." Not just Blaze, but other Guardians and their fellows who knew Steve when he was still small. Thor dares to hope that he might be included in their number, if it's permitted. It must be, or else the Guardians wouldn't even be in the Nexus, would they?

"He will," Blaze answers emphatically, echoed by her Ghost bobbing beside her. "Even if we hadn't promised Barnes, we'd have his back. He'll have his Ghost, too, and a Vanguard to mentor him. And I know he can count on you.

Jie turns in at an open door, showing them into a large empty room. The two Guardians at their rear stay outside as they head in. On the opposite wall, a long window looks out onto the City. A pair of Frames are already there: one sweeping the floor industriously, the other draping a white cloth over the table that makes the only furniture in the room. It finishes tucking the headrest into place and stands aside for them.

"He'll be safe here," says Jie. "The door locks, but we can post a guard to make sure no-one wanders in. Anyone but Ghosts, obviously. You can ask the Frames for anything you need, they'll bring some more things in." It could be a long wait. But some of the Tower's inhabitants are familiar with playing the long game.

If Blaze had told Thor that he wouldn't be allowed to remain in Steve's life, it would not have changed his mind to turn his friend's body over to the Guardians, no matter how painful that decision would have been. It would have been worth the price to know that somewhere out there, Steve still lived, kicking ass and taking names, even if Thor would never see him again.

But hearing otherwise still feels very reassuring, regardless. He's lost too many friends, too much family, to not hold tight to what little he has left.

Thor steels himself and carefully lays the shrouded body on the bier, careful to ease Steve's head down as if he were only injured. For a moment, he can even fool himself that that's the case, until he steps away and reality comes crashing back in. The serum won't heal this, no matter how long they wait. It's to be a Ghost, or nothing at all.

He lets out a heavy sigh and rubs at his eye, weariness creeping back in around the edges as he suddenly has nothing to do with himself. It's a feeling he knows well, and his hand itches for a bottle of mead to fill the emptiness, as he's done for months now. Not an option at the moment, obviously, so he chases away that thought. "What's the longest you've had to wait before?" he asks instead.

"I've never held a vigil like this for anyone else," Jie admits, looking to Blaze uneasily. The Exo has moved around the other side as Thor lays down the shrouded form, optics fixed on their friend. Ghost drifts into place close by, shell twitching distractedly as he sends and receives communications. "I don't think anyone has." It's not wrong. There are no explicit rules against it. But neither is it their custom, and he has a feeling someone's bound to take against it.

"I'm going to get some things," he adds, shifting his weight. "If it's all right, I'd like to set up some incense. It... would feel wrong not to do something." Blaze nods a little, but Jie looks to Thor before he steps out, letting the door close behind him.

It's after they're alone with the sweeping Frame that Blaze says, "I waited sixteen hundred years for my Ghost. Give or take a century." She looks up at Thor then, considering the Asgardian. He still looks resolute as before, no matter the fatigue starting to tug at his expression. It's reassuring to see. She adds, "I don't think it'll take that long, for Steve. But it's a good thing you aren't human."

It's in times like these that Thor finds a little comfort in ritual, structured ways to honor the fallen and feel as though one is accomplishing something other than just waiting. Jie will find no objection from Thor, who nods also, and thinks of his own people's customs. "Bring pine, if you have it." Maybe it will do nothing more than expected, but if there is a Tyr in this world, it surely cannot hurt to ask him to watch over Steve.

Sixteen hundred years is a long time indeed. Longer than Thor has lived already, if only barely. His jaw tightens under the braided beard, but he nods regardless. "I certainly hope not. Things... things can change too quickly to wait that kind of time." It took less than a decade for his own world to be turned upside down, and a certain future is no longer so certain. But of all the Avengers, Blaze is right that Thor is lucky in that he can wait so long, if it comes to that. "Though I suppose if he takes his time, he might have a shot at beating me sparring eventually," he adds in a lighter tone, though when he tries to imagine himself old and gray, all he can picture is Odin. Well, if his father could be battle-ready nearly to his twilight years, surely Thor can last as long.

"Will do," come Jie's parting words as he leaves. Wood is one thing they have in steady supply, between the mountain forests around the City and their constant need for fuel.

Thor's joke, small as it is, brings a brighter spark to the Exo's eyes, a flash of her mouth as she laughs softly. "Lucky for you he's not that patient. Always wants- hnh. Wanted to jump right into the fray."

Blaze can't imagine that would change. Can't imagine he'd be that different. But that's the kicker, isn't it? It doesn't make a shard of difference what she can imagine. She shifts her weight back, reaches up to rub uneasily at an antenna.

"There's something we've got to talk about, though. This isn't the way we normally do things, like Jie said. Guardians don't know where they come from. You can guess why that is- anyone who knew us is usually long dead by the time we're raised. Thing is, we're not supposed to go looking, either. No regulation against it, it's just... frowned on. This- your being here still - is probably going to bother some people. You should have fair warning."

Hearing her correct herself is painful, not because she's wrong, but because even though the body is laid out right in front of him, part of Thor still resists believing that Steve is really dead. Or maybe it's just the part where it reminds him that there is no guarantee that this will work. Or that the Steve that may return might not be the same Steve that he knew, though he can't imagine his friend being any less eager to meet a worthy fight either.

She has Thor's attention almost at once, a flare of surprise in his eye, followed by a sort of incredulous look. "But you knew Steve. And so did the others - some of them anyway. Is that a problem, too?" If not, that seems horrendously unfair at best.

"It's not ideal," she answers, a touch dryly. Her optics are tracking his body language, more than his face. "Maybe they won't be too pleased with me either, when I tell them what I'm thinking. But Tarana and I and the rest are Guardians - we know the custom. The way it's supposed to be done. You're a stranger here, so they'll worry about you first."

She considers for a second. "And they'd be kind of right to. If he decides he wants to know who he was, you're not going to hold the truth from him, are you?"

It's a good thing Thor doesn't play poker, because he's developed quite a few tells that give away his thoughts. Namely his habit of wringing his hands together, a mannerism Frigga used to do when she was under stress or deep in thought, which seems to help - a little - in soothing his anxiety. He's clearly not happy about what he's hearing, holding himself stiffly as he listens.

"Of course I-" He bites down on his words before he can finish, wrestling down a flare of temper that he hasn't felt in what seems like ages. He can't go leaping over cliffs without looking anymore. He can't. Flying off the handle is what got half the universe killed, and he can never forget that, its lessons beaten harshly into him. So he forces himself to stop and consider it, consider Steve coming to him renewed and empty and asking about his past. Considers how secrets have affected those that he loves already. Considers how those secrets came to light, and the poison that came from keeping them locked away. Loki's parentage. Hela's existence. Stark's parents' deaths.

He's still upset, but he's calmer when he responds again, several long moments later. "Of course I'd tell him, if that's what he wanted." Even if she hadn't specified it was discouraged, not forbidden, he's not sure he would be able to keep it to himself. Not if it was Steve asking. "If he ever visits the Nexus, I'm not sure you could hide it from him." Maybe because of people he'd meet here, or maybe not, but there's no avoiding the PSA looming over the Plaza with Captain America on the screen.

What surprises her is that he hesitates. To Blaze, at least, the answer is obvious, and she tilts her head a bit as she waits for him to reach a conclusion. It's still the one she expected. But it's an answer less of instinct than of determination and reason. Less spark and more steel.

"Yeah. I'd do the same." She folds her arms, and Ghost glances up at her from where he's floating in downcast silence. "Truth is, I don't know how I feel about it. Seems to me there's a good reason we leave our past behind. But... actively concealing the truth from him is. And you're right. It'd never work in his case. That's what we all have to accept. The only way to keep him from finding out about Steve Rogers would be to hide the Nexus from him, and even saying that out loud sounds epically dumb." And she means that in the most literal way. It's the kind of terrible plan which kicks off every ancient fireside tale that lasts five nights and, if you're lucky, turns out to be a comedy.

The sound Thor makes is less a laugh and more a snort of dismissal at the very idea of trying. The tension in his shoulders relaxes a little, once she confirms she's on his side of this, though he doesn't fully let down his guard. By the Norns and all the Nine, why can't things ever be simple and straightforward for once?

He clasps his hands together to try to keep himself from endless, restless fidgeting. It doesn't work, exactly, but it helps a little. "I've seen little good come of keeping secrets, even the less obvious ones. Whether they are kept in good intentions or not. Tradition is worth honoring, but if it's not practical or possible, shouldn't there be exceptions?" It's a problem he's sure Asgard will need to address in the coming years, integrating their ways with those of the humans, adjusting to more primitive technologies and alien customs in their new home. They will have to decide what is worth keeping, and preserve those traditions that still dwell at their core, but they cannot follow in the exact footsteps of their ancestors any longer.

Steve won't know who he was, where he came from. But if the essence of the man that Thor knew remains, he's damn well not going to be content leaving a mystery like this untouched.

"Some secrets are better kept that way," she says quietly, optics steady on him. "But this one is his. It's not ours to keep from him." Not unless he wants them to, and she doesn't really see him making that choice.

The Exo shakes her head. "I'm with you on this. And the Commander's a wise man. He's got to see the same thing. So maybe it'll make some of us uncomfortable, but they can't stop us, and they aren't going to turn away a Guardian. People here might make a fuss but at the end of the day it won't matter. So it's not them I'm worried about. It's everyone else who knew him."

Edited 2019-10-25 19:12 (UTC)

That gets a deeper frown out of him, creasing his brow. 'Everyone else' must mean the Nexus, or home, but... Thor feels like he's on uncertain footing again, not understanding the gravity of what she's trying to convey. He's trying, he really is, but today has been such a long and horrible day even before he had to try to get his head around the Guardians' cultural norms. "What are you worried they'll do?"

He's fidgeting again, already having forgotten that he was trying not to, tracing the grooves in the joints of his metal left hand over and over.

It's difficult as well because these are not things Blaze is used to discussing. Thinking about, yes, in one way or another. But it's a problem she's not actively confronted before, nor spoken of to anyone else. Finding the words takes some thought.

"There'll be people in the Nexus who think they know him," she says, her gaze dropping back to Steve's covered face. "Some of them might be enemies, most of them won't. You understand he's not going to be the same man, but other people- they'll just see their friend come back to them. Steve Rogers version 1.2, just with new gear and new powers." She doesn't realize how her optics have narrowed, the tension creeping into her voice when she looks up again. "We need to look out for him. To make it clear he gets to define himself. I don't want-"

"Blaze." Ghost interrupts, his voice shaken but determined. "We can deal with that when the time comes. Right now we all just... need some breathing space." He's looking between them cautiously, knowing the fears troubling his Guardian and reading the agitation in Thor's body language.

To make it clear he gets to define himself. Maybe there's more to it, more nuance than he can see, but that... that much is enough that Thor thinks he's on the same page. He has spent his own entire life trying to live up to what his father expected him to be - warrior, king, god - only to be led to the realization that he is his own man, and need follow no other path than the one that he chooses to walk.

Steve has a chance for a fresh start, unburdened by his past, the expectations that others have placed on him. To escape the unhappiness and heartbreak of the last few years, and leave the figurehead of Captain America behind him, leaving only the man.

Thor nods once, slowly, following Blaze's gaze to the shrouded body. And yet, her Ghost's interjection brings a small measure of relief, putting this problem off for another day. Perhaps all the way until the day that Steve comes back to them, if that is his fate. They do not have to solve this all at once. His shoulders slump a little, and he lets the air out from his lungs. "Right. Of course."

“I’ve put the word out to as many other Ghosts as I can,” Ghost says softly. “

They’ll share it wherever they go. If his Ghost is anywhere out there, they’ll hear. Eventually. For now, that’s… all we can do.

”

“For now.” Blaze reaches up to touch her tiny partner as he drifts closer to her. There’s time yet. Ghost is right. Still, she wouldn’t be so willing to settle down if she didn’t get the impression that Thor understands. Whether he sees it from the same angle as she does or not, they seem to be in accord. Questions of exactly how they’re going to handle what lies ahead can wait a while. Until what comes, comes.

There’s some relief in having that out in the open, for her. Blaze isn’t one to sit on an issue when it’s eating at her. With it settled, she takes more note of Thor’s weariness. She has no idea how long it’s been since he rested. Doesn’t know the half of what he’s been through these past few days. Months.

“If you need to rest here, or eat, you’re welcome,” she offers, though at that moment the door opens again, Jie carrying a small table into the room. He nods to them before setting it against the farthest wall and unslinging the pack at his back, setting out a small burner, sticks of pine kindling, candles, incense. He’ll set it all up as quietly as he can: a shrine both to the man they’ve lost and the man they hope for. Somewhere for Steve’s friends to nurture the hope smoldering yet.

There are words to be said, to Steve and for him. A vigil to begin. The service bots will bring chairs for those who wish to sit with him. Soon, as the sun rises higher, Blaze will have to leave a while and put their case to the Speaker, to Commander Zavala. Steve’s other friends will come to pay their respects: Lord Shaxx, his boisterous presence turned solemn; Tarana Parvin; a young doctor too shy to speak to anyone else there. The number of candles will grow, their light flickering over the walls, and the sweet scent of incense will twine with the fresh scent of burning pine. Steve may be dead, but he will not be forgotten. And he’s not going to be alone.

Beyond the great windows, the Traveler watches over them.

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Excerpt 010: Hero's Return

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