"AAAARRRRHHHHH!"
Yon-Rogg's scream tore through the ruined chamber, reverberating off the broken metal like the howl of a dying beast. It was certainly not something anyone would expect from a hardened general like him—least of all Danvers, who knew him too well.
She found herself staring with narrowed eyes. It was an unsettling sight, seeing the stern commander break so… easily. After all, he had still been her mentor not long ago, even if she had later learned he was only deceiving.
"What's happening to him?" she muttered under her breath, almost to herself.
"Ricky's in his head." Beside her, Isabella rubbed her chin thoughtfully, as if the spectacle sparked more curiosity than revulsion. "I wonder if it feels the same as reading a human's mind…"
Danvers whipped her head toward her, a brow raised. "You can even do mind reading? You magicians have so many abilities…"
"I suppose you could say that…"
In fact, witches and wizards have only one ability, and that's magic. Spells are just the result of using that power in different ways. But it's only natural for non-magical people to think otherwise.
Crack…
Shhhh…
Clatter… clatter…
The chamber echoed continuously with sparking wires, groaning metal, and leaking gas, all blending with the Kree commander's scream—the loudest sound of them all.
The two women continued observing silently. Isabella obviously knew better than to disturb someone rampaging through another's mind with Legilimency, while Danvers had too many thoughts racing to know where to begin.
A few minutes later, hesitantly, she finally voiced one of the thoughts nagging her the most.
"Say… can all of you do what… your fiancé is doing?"
Isabella glanced at her, and seeing the curiosity she couldn't hide, a small chuckle escaped her lips. "Theoretically," she said, shrugging. "But Ricky isn't exactly someone you compare with the rest of us."
"Really… is he really that impressive?" Danvers pressed, a smile infecting her as well, seeing Isabella's nonchalance.
"Ehem… ladies…" Maverick's voice cut in suddenly as he cleared his throat, putting a stop to their little gossip. After severing the mental connection from the Kree commander, he turned to the two women. "You two can gossip some other time… we need to head back to Earth and meet up with Fury."
He had just finished tearing through the alien's mind, and, as expected of a commander of the Kree Empire's army, Yon-Rogg knew many of their secrets—even some of their intergalactic military's "hidden cards," so to speak.
Of course, there were also the details of the fleet he now knew for certain was heading their way: its size, exactly when it would arrive, basically everything.
"Is it really as bad as Talos said?" Isabella asked, frowning slightly.
"Maybe…" Maverick also narrowed his eyes, a thoughtful look settling over him as he considered the armada approaching their planet.
He had seen, through Yon-Rogg's memories, exactly who Ronan was. The Accuser was indeed as formidable as Talos had said—especially with his Universal Hammer and armor. But that was only to the likes of someone at Yon-Rogg's level. To Maverick, Yon-Rogg was nothing more than just another extra, and he had full confidence that, with his current abilities, he could handle Ronan.
That said, that's only if it's Ronan alone. His fleet of fully armored starships, capable of firing hundreds of ballistic warheads, was another matter entirely. Even if he could take down Ronan in a short span of time, who's to say one of the ships wouldn't target a city—or all of them hit random locations in the meantime?
Of course, if push came to shove, those two old farmers wouldn't sit idly by either; he was sure of that. But he didn't want them interfering in this.
No, he needed to call in some muscle for this. It would also be the perfect opportunity to convince those old things of his plans for the coming year. Having witnessed it firsthand, they would only understand that the magical world no longer had the luxury to play hide-and-seek.
Plus, there's Danvers too—the future Captain Marvel. Though not yet at the level of piercing through battleships as if they were made of tofu, she had still leveled up considerably in overall power after breaking free from the Kree's control.
Hmm.
Speaking of… what's up with her?
"Carol?"
Following her dazed gaze, he saw it was Yon-Rogg—his unconscious body lying on the floor, she seemed to be lost in thought about, as if in some deep contemplation.
"Why… feeling sorry for your old teacher?" he asked, guessing the thought troubling her.
"No..." she said without looking.
"He's not dead, if you're wondering. Or I can make him disappear for you... if you don't have the stomach—"
Boooom!
But before he could finish his sentence, Yon-Rogg's head suddenly exploded, even his blue Kree blood vaporizing wherever the blast struck.
"—or maybe not."
Danvers took a long inhale, exhaling as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Then, glancing back at Maverick, she added confidently, "Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not that fragile..."
Maverick's brow arched. Well, that was true—she hadn't even flinched at killing her former mentor.
"Ricky, come on tell us what you found out from the alien's memories?" Isabella chimed in just then, steering the conversation back to the topic.
"I'd like to know that too..."
"Hmm…" Glancing between the two blondes, he thought briefly once again about Yon-Rogg's memories.
"It's like this… the bad news is, the Accuser's fleet really is heading toward Earth, led by Ronan himself. And the not-so-bad news…" He glanced at his watch before continuing, "is that we still have about twenty-one hours. Oh, and… he won't be bringing his entire fleet—just fifty out of the hundreds of starships under his command. At least, that's what our headless friend knew."
Isabella's expression instantly darkened, her thoughts dwelling on the worst that could happen: fifty enormous warships, each the size of a football stadium, armed to the teeth with advanced alien weapons. Seeing the Kree ship they were in, she could only picture how overwhelming fifty of these would be.
She had seen Kree weapons firsthand and knew just how devastating their arsenal could be. And what about the even bigger armaments that would obviously be built into their starships?
She wasn't naive about science. Even human technological weapons had evolved to the point of leveling entire cities; so what about an advanced alien civilization? How much would their technology, their weapons, have evolved? To her credit, her concerns were very real.
Meanwhile, Danvers, on the other hand, didn't seem surprised by what Maverick said—worried, yes, but not taken aback.
"What you said matches what he told me too… when he was trying to convince me to give up." She met Maverick's gaze with a determined look. "This whole thing started with me, so I'll do my best to repel them from Earth."
As expected from a soldier trained by a hardened alien general, her answer was exactly what he anticipated.
"I can tell you more..." she continued. "Each Imperial cruiser carries three warheads capable of leveling a small city, not to mention the dozens of mini-fighter pods aboard each." She paused, having thought of something, then added, "But I'm fairly certain he won't target C53 with the arsenal he's bringing. At best, it's all for intimidation."
"Oh…" Maverick gave her a questioning look. "Do you know him that well... enough to be so certain?"
"I don't… In all my six years with them, I've never met him once. But every Kree knows his character, his deeds. He's a ruthless warmonger, yes, but he won't engage any party unless he's certain of an absolute victory."
"Let me guess—you think it's the All-Father's wrath he wants to avoid?" Maverick asked.
"That's right," Danvers said matter-of-factly.
"Are you talking about the King of Asgard from the legends?"
"The one and only," Maverick said to Isabella, then, turning back to Danvers, added,
"Your guess isn't far off, but…" he shook his head. "From what I saw in Yon-Rogg's memories, during his talk with Ronan, the Accuser was convinced Odin wouldn't step in—even if he attacked this planet. Apparently, Asgard was tied up with something else at the time, and the All-Father couldn't spare his army shortly."
Then with a last shrug, he added, "anyways, that's how it looked from their conversation."
"Are you saying he's really coming to this planet for conquest?" For the first time, Danvers lost her composure, and a deep worry crossed her face. Until now, her greatest assurance had been the universal fact that Earth was a dominion protected by Asgard. But if what Maverick said was true…
She also didn't doubt Maverick's words or his account of Yon-Rogg's memories with Ronan. In her mind, there was no reason to lie about something like that, so the thought never even crossed her.
And Maverick did not lie on his part. That's what Yon-Rogg's recent conversation with Ronan was about. Only, he may have left out some details about a certain blue cube. But hey, she didn't ask.
"No, not for conquest," he answered her. "Even if Asgard were otherwise occupied, Odin wouldn't let one of his realms fall into ruin. Ronan told Yon-Rogg he wanted to teach, and I'm quoting here, these primitive monkeys a lesson… for giving asylum to terrorists."
"By lesson, you mean hitting a few cities with their weapons?" Isabella asked, nonetheless looking worried.
"Well… they didn't go into the specifics," Maverick replied, turning to her.
Danvers gave him a long, piercing look, as if searching for something.
"What?"
"Why… don't you seem troubled?" she asked, genuinely curious.
"Because…" Maverick said, a small smile tugging at his lips.
---
Ssssssss
Sparks of orange flared suddenly in the middle of the quinjet that was just about to land next to Maria's property, drawing startled yelps and gasps from every occupant—human and alien alike—crammed inside its small cabin.
Click click.
One handgun and one energy blaster were immediately raised at the orange circle that had formed, but then lowered just as quickly when three figures stepped through it—casually, as if they were just walking out of an ordinary doorway.
"Danvers!"
"Carol!"
"Son of a—gun!"
"I figured you'd come flying in on that big damn bird of yours," Fury said, lowering his gun. "But a goddamn portal never crossed my mind."
"Hello to you too, Agent Fury..." Maverick replied back to the bastard who couldn't string three words together without a curse coming out of his mouth.
"What about Yon-Rogg? Have you taken care of him?" Talos chimed in from the side, and every pair of eyes turned toward the three, waiting expectantly.
"Let's just say they've all tasted hellfire," Maverick answered casually, then, with a glance to the man, he added, "Oh, and my apologies. I've claimed your people's last refuge as my spoil."
"It was scrap metal already, barely holding together in the state it was in," Danvers cut in. "Don't worry. We'll get you a new cruiser. Maybe more than one."
Minutes later, the quinjet touched down smoothly, and the group disembarked, making their way into Maria's house.
"By the way," Maverick said, sitting at the dining table and tearing a toast in half before sliding one piece across to Fury, "why hole up here? Why not D.C. or S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ?"
Fury eyed the toast like it was something vulgar, and shoved it back. "I'm waiting on you. Or did you forget you're a High Councilor of the World Security Council, Mr. High Councilor?"
That, of course, was a lie. He had already briefed everything he knew to Pierce, but Pierce's answer was simple, even a little inexplicable to Fury: follow Maverick's lead on how to proceed.
And reading the thought, Maverick also grew confused. What's the matter with Pierce? What's he cooking? He considered a few possibilities, then dismissed them just as quickly.
Or he could simply just ask. Anyways, the plan he had in mind required talking to the head of the Snake's Den.
"Call your boss… I want to speak to him."
"Pierce?"
"Who else?"
Fury made a lazy shrug, then did as told and before long a rough male's voice came from the other line hitting Maverick's ear.
"Archmage Caesar…"
"Director," Maverick replied evenly. "I'll be direct. In twenty hours, a fleet of fifty warships, each the size of a football stadium and armed to the teeth, is heading for Earth. I don't need to explain why. You can guess. But…" He made a long pause, and Pierce, even after the bombshell, did not interrupt and waited patiently for him to continue.
"...From S.H.I.E.L.D., Agent Fury is enough as a line operative to assist, and, to be honest, neither you nor S.H.I.E.L.D. has the ability to assist in the plan I have to repel the coming invaders… Agent Fury will however stream everything that's happening, and what I really want you to do is share it live with every head of state around the world. Get them in a conference in the short time we have until I give further notice. Do you have any questions?"
The line on the other end was silent for a moment, then just as calmly as before, Pierce asked, "Could you share your plan to… stop these fleets of alien spaceships?"
"Gladly," Maverick replied with the faintest smile. "We'll meet them with a united vanguard... the full might of Earth, standing together. Here's how it will unfold…"
Half an hour later, after having answered Pierce's doubts—or more accurately, just giving him a straightforward answer and not caring whether he believed it or not—Maverick handed the phone back to Fury.
While he was explaining everything, Fury had been listening with all kinds of expressions coming to his face, and Maria, Danvers, Talos, and Isabella had also joined the table at some point and had been listening.
"Are you sure you can pull this off in such a short time, kid? This is the safety of the whole world we're dealing with here after all."
"Can you suggest a better idea, Mr. Agent Nicholas Joseph Fury?" Maverick raised a brow at the man.
"How the hell did you—"
"You have mine," Talos cut in just in time, and with a solemn expression, he continued, "along with the full support of the soldiers still standing with me, mage Caesar."
"And mine," Danvers added without hesitation. She glanced toward Maria, then back at Maverick with a faint smile. "This is my home too."
"Good," Maverick said, rising from his chair. "Then I'll send the signal immediately for everyone to summon…"
"Ricky..." Isabella called softly, hurrying after him, while the others followed, curious about what this summoning could mean.
Outside, once he reached the center of the yard, Maverick made no pretense and summoned his magic. The others watched from behind, their eyes following his long coat fluttering in the wind as he slowly raised his right hand, as if lifting something heavy, until it stretched high above his head.
"Expecto Patronum!"
First, there was an almost blinding white light and everyone instinctively closed their eyes, and then opened them a moment later.
With astonishment and even sparkles from the few Kree children's eyes, they all saw a thick mass of white fume-like substance rising from his outstretched arm, gathering into a massive ball over their heads. Though it was past four in the afternoon and the sun still shone brightly, the white mass was unmistakably visible, growing larger and larger until it loomed over them, as massive as the house itself, like a floating cloud.
Then, when they all thought it was over, they saw the massive mass of light wobble and churn, morphing into a shape. First came a head—a bird, a raven to be more accurate—as if breaking free from fog. Then formed wings, wide, as wide as fifty meters spanning in total.
Once, twice, and continuing, until finally a majestic white raven flapped its wings over the property—but surprisingly, when such a large wingspan should have produced huge gusts of wind, nobody felt anything.
Everyone's heads were tilted up, looking at the giant, beautiful, whiter-than-snow bird as large as the house itself over their heads, and they couldn't help but feel inexplicably happy just by looking at it.
"It's so… beautiful," someone whispered.
"What… what is that?"
"I've never felt so… happy… looking at a damn bird of all things." It wasn't hard to guess from whom that came from.
Infact, they weren't even aware of the comments they were making, before they saw the giant raven then suddenly stop flapping its wings, but still remain in mid-air.
Then its white, ethereal body started to glow even more before suddenly it started to disintegrate—no, it started breaking up into… more birds. More ravens, over a dozen?
"What's happening…" Danvers asked, nudging Isabella by the arm.
"Oh… ah… I think Ricky's sending messages to all the people he mentioned over the phone earlier, telling them to gather here… I guess," Isabella said, a little unsurely.
Is this what they mean by 'send the ravens'?
Meanwhile, Maverick poured his magic, and more importantly, the thoughts he wanted to convey to each and every part of his Patronus. Isabella was not wrong, and what he was doing was no small feat at all.
Every raven would go to a different person, and every message would be slightly different to each, so a lot of concentration and magic was poured into this seemingly simple operation. Not to mention the distance the Patronus had to cover—the energy doesn't fall from a tree, but it's his magic it will be using.
Fortunately, at least he could teleport them nearby, roughly guessing where each person would be.
Instilling the messages, since they were different for each, took some time, and roughly ten minutes later, he finally moved from his strange posture of hands stretched up while magical birds flew all around him.
Then, everyone saw he started making strange circles in the air, and subsequently, over a dozen orange circles formed scattered over his head.
"Go!"
He said, and all the white birds, as if already having known what to do, flew into their respective portals.
—————————
Author's Note:
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