Ashem's ruby eyes went wide, her usual composure completely shattered as she stared at the swirling, sparking gateway that now dominated their apartment. "That's… a portal," she breathed, her voice filled with a disbelieving awe. "In my world, only the Ascians have power like this."
Leo scratched his head, the orange crystal still warm in his other hand. "Ascians? What are those?"
A shadow crossed Ashem's face, her expression turning grim. "The villains of the story, you could say. Shadowy puppet masters who orchestrate calamities from behind the curtain. The Flood of Light that's destroying this world… it's likely their handiwork." She shook her head, dismissing the thought. "Never mind them. When did you learn to do this?"
Leo looked just as bewildered as she felt. "I have no idea," he said, shaking his head. "One minute I was telling you about the dream, and the next, I could just… feel this power inside me. I just tried to reach for it, and this happened."
Ashem tilted her head, her gaze fixed on the crystal. "It has to be this. The gift from the ancient woman."
As she spoke, she suddenly felt a familiar drain on her own reserves. She looked at Leo and saw that the color was already starting to leave his face.
"I didn't think it would take this much energy," Leo said, a wry, tired smile on his lips. "Just opening it for a few seconds has almost completely tapped me out."
Seeing he still had the energy to complain, Ashem felt a wave of relief. "Don't you have me?" she said, stepping to his side. "My aether is more than enough to sustain it for a while." She placed her hand over his, their fingers interlaced around the warm, glowing crystal. Leo felt a surge of strength flow into him, stabilizing the portal.
"But where does it go?" Ashem asked, her brow furrowed. "The energy consumption is insane."
"I'm not sure…" Leo said, his expression uncertain. "When I opened it, I was thinking about… home. My apartment. I was thinking about how Hydra almost killed me, and how I couldn't just let that go."
A spark of curiosity and excitement lit up in Ashem's eyes, her long white tail starting to wag back and forth, betraying her otherwise calm demeanor. "Since you're not sure," she said, a grin spreading across her face, "how about we find out? I'm pretty confident in my own strength. I think we can handle a little danger."
They looked at each other, the same mixture of nervous tension and thrilling anticipation reflected in their eyes. Without another word, they tightened their grip on each other's hands and stepped cautiously into the swirling vortex.
The world dissolved. They were caught in a torrent of raw energy, a river of time and space. Fragmented images flashed all around them, bubbles of reality containing scenes they couldn't comprehend. Leo saw glimpses: a man in a suit of flying red and gold armor, a raging green giant, a blond man in red, white, and blue throwing an impossible shield.
He knew, in that moment, that he was in the Marvel Cinematic Universe—Earth-199999, to be precise. And with that certainty came a quiet, sinking sadness. He saw countless worlds, but none of them were the ordinary, boring Earth he'd come from. That life was gone forever.
Just as quickly as it began, the chaotic journey ended. They stumbled out of the portal and into a familiar, yet strangely alien place—Leo's apartment.
It had been completely torn apart. His books were thrown from their shelves, the sofa cushions were slashed open, and even the floorboards had been pried up. It was the work of people who had been looking for something, and who hadn't cared about the mess they left behind.
"Well, this feels familiar," Ashem said, rubbing her temples. "A lot like arriving in the First."
"Did you see all those images?" Leo asked, still trying to process the flood of information.
"The glimpses of other worlds? Maybe future events?" Ashem offered with a shrug. "I don't pay them much mind. When I was first summoned, I saw a vision of myself and all my friends dying horribly. You learn to treat them as possibilities, not promises." She gave him a curious look. "Didn't you see anything?"
Leo touched his nose awkwardly. "Uh, I was unconscious for my grand arrival."
"Right…" Ashem sighed, then looked around the trashed apartment. "Well, your world certainly seems more exciting than mine, based on the trailer, at least."
"You have no idea," Leo said with a wry smile. "And what we saw was just a tiny fraction of it." He thought of the endless multiverse, the cosmic threats, the coming crises. "The First might be in trouble, but this place… this place is a magnet for it."
"I can tell," Ashem said, nudging a broken lamp with her foot. "Is this really your home? It looks like it was ransacked."
"Yeah, about that," Leo said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Remember how I said I was in a bit of a crisis when you guys summoned me? This would be the work of Hydra, the people who were hunting me." He winced. "Sorry, I probably should have mentioned the mortal enemies before we jumped through a portal to their last known location."
"Hey," she said, bumping his shoulder with her own. "We're the same person, remember? Your enemies are my enemies." She leaned in, her cat eyes gleaming with curiosity. "So what did you do to get this 'Hydra' so obsessed with you?"
"I said one wrong sentence on a college forum," he replied with a helpless smile.
"Huh? One sentence?"
Before she could question him further, her ears twitched and stood straight up. Her body went rigid.
"Someone's coming," she hissed.
The words had barely left her mouth when they heard the heavy thud of combat boots pounding up the stairs outside. A moment later, the apartment door splintered, crashing inward, and several men in black tactical gear stormed into the room, rifles raised. It was Hydra.
Leo was stunned for a moment, then a slow, tired smile spread across his face. This time, there was no panic, no frantic urge to run. "Well," he said calmly. "Talk about a coincidence."
The leader of the squad, a man with cold, dead eyes, leveled his rifle at Leo's chest. "We've been waiting for you," he sneered, a cruel smile twisting his lips. "It's been a few months, but the brass was convinced you'd show up here eventually. Looks like I get to collect the bounty."
Without another word, he pulled the trigger.