Chapter 57- The Great Truth Revealed

  Citadel Fourth floor- Portal Room- 7th day of the month ofNiffle of the 6983 GR (Late Night)

  Nath’aniel-

  Instead of getting a freshly powered power cell from the basement, the mage simply used his own reserves to top off the partially powered cell already in the Citadel’s portal room. He sniffled, but was still physically unable to cry, as he only half paid attention to the task at hand, his thoughts often drifting back to his now faceless childhood friend and how much he both missed her and was jealous of the others for their ability to show their grief.

  “There you are. Good, I had a question I wanted to ask you before I returned back to New York.” Steven Rogers said as he walked to Nath’aniel side.

  ‘I hadn’t even noticed the room’s doors open.’ The mage thought as he watched the Enhanced Tribesmen and a Saber construct approach him. When the two of them were about three arm's length from him Nath'aniel asked. "Wait there, please? Just in case I accidentally overcharge the cell."

  The Northerner nodded and stayed where he was.

  The mage returned his focus to the cell and his charging of it. After a moment Steven offered his condolences. "I heard about your friend, I am sorry. Some girl, I hear, from what the archer dy was saying she made a hell of a name for herself. But then she had also passed away while you were in the medical thing."

  "Thank you," Nath'aniel muttered, but otherwise kept his mind and gaze on the charging.

  Again a moment of silence passed before the Enhanced asked. “What was her name?”

  “I don’t know.” The mage sadly admitted. He slowed the charging as the cell’s resistance told him that he was nearly done. Then he added. “Her name and face were taken from me, by her father’s magic… I am told that he did this to protect his first wife’s mental state.”

  “First wife?” Steven asked surprised.

  Nath’aniel nodded, before answering. “Asgardian nobles are permitted to have up to four wives, although as I understand it the children from the second, third, and fourth wives are more for contingencies than for any real inheritance. Thus although Lord Balder, who would be Odin's first son, is older and more experienced, he is not a Prince. While Odin's other sons, Thor and Loki, are.'

  “But I assume that you did not seek me out with questions about Asgard, not when actual Asgardians are downstairs for you to ask such questions.” He paused his speaking when he ended his feed of energy into the cell, before asking. “So in the spirit of Entreatment Day, Captain what two questions may I answer for you?”

  The war veteran looked a touch afraid before he policed his face and cleared his throat. When he was ready to speak he started with. "I am going to ramble a bit, hope you don't mind, but something has been bothering me.'

  "Ok, so because of the serum, I can recall everything I have seen and experienced since being injected." Nath'aniel nodded in understanding when the captain paused again. "And I assume that Erik and the others just accept that you calling us tribesmen of the nd is your thing, or a cultural thing, and it does make sense, what with the tribe of the sea, and the tribe of watchers thing you told me about back at the bar. But the problem I have with it is that you did once say the word, human. You said that the sky tribe "gathered all of humanity'.”

  At hearing the super soldier say that, made the mage hold his breath, as the other man continued to speak.

  If Steven noticed this action, it didn’t stop him from continuing his rant. “Which says to me that you are consciously separating humans from the rest of us, and that kind of got me wondering. So I guess the first thing I want to ask you is this… Am I human?”

  Nath’aniel had to take a breath, before he could answer. “No. No, you are not.”

  “Because I am a tribesman of the nd.” The super soldier stated, when the mage nodded he asked his second question. "So what happened to the original humans?"

  Nath'aniel needed another deep breath before admitting. "The Sky Tribe killed all of them."

  The captain rubbed his chin in thought as he calmly guessed. "And when you told our ancestors that, they took it as a challenge to their identity and they attacked your people. Eventually, your people just decided to not tell us anything, and we being the petty people that we are, we just fought over other things and we eventually forgot about it entirely. And now we live in a world where we can split atoms and blow up cities, and our soldiers can outrun vehicles let alone the creatures in the wild."

  “You’re taking this rather well.” The mage pointed out to the soldier.

  Steve chuckled a bit before admitting. “Well to be fair, this isn’t the first time something challenged my entire existence.” Then he frowned and asked. “What makes us different from the original humans, I mean besides the super genes I mean? Oh, wait you said I only get two questions. Neve…”

  "Your accepting of the Great Truth has earned you more answers," Nath'aniel said cutting off the war hero. Then he added. "While my ancestors knew the motivation in the creation of the Tribes of the Sea and our own, we do not know the full motivation behind the creation of yours. However, we know that the Sky Tribe in their tests to make the three genes compatible with humans, and they learned that they had two obstacles to overcome.'

  "First, it would take several generations for their changes to fully take root, and the second was humanity as it was, had a chance to revert back to the way they were before. So the key difference between you tribesmen of the nd and humans is that your kinds' first generation was grown and altered in tanks rather than allowing it naturally change into what you are today.'

  “While we, the Magi and the Atntean’s, were already standard living humans altered to suit the needs of the Sky Tribe. Despite your people technically receiving fewer changes than either of ours, your kind was never truly, ever was human. This was why they bred your kind in tanks, first so they could guarantee that you would be made into what they wanted more accurately, and in what should have taken two hundred years of breeding, they instead made in sixty days."

  Steve had to wipe the beginning of some tears away as he heard that. he sniffled twice before asking. "Do you know why they killed the rest of humanity?"

  "We were told by the leaders of their Tribe had deemed them as waste. My kin were made to both watch and confirm that all of the humans had been eliminated. Personally, I think it was more that they didn't want to leave a record of what they did to them." The mage ftly answered, yet he recalled the fits of sorrow and depression when he first watched his grandfather's recalling of the incident.

  The super soldier rubbed his chin as he took a breath. Then after a moment, he asked. "What does that mean for us?"

  "Nothing, you are what you are. Your fates were determined over seven thousand years ago… In the end of it, the tribesmen of the nd will be what they are, as you are incapable of adapting to external stimuli after the changes committed to you. Minus of course, if your unique genes alter your bodies when they awaken." Nath'aniel answered honestly.

  "We are what we are," Steve repeated.

  The young mage nodded before adding. “A race that is struggling to survive in a harsh world. Much like thousands, if not countless of others in the wider universe and other realities.” The super soldier smiled at his addition. Then he stated. "It is why I cannot allow my kind to just die out. Not only in a selfish need to exist, but we Magi strive to remain so we can bear witness for those that have already been silenced."

  Both of them stopped talking and turned when they heard the doors to the room open again. Standing in the doorway was Erik and the woman trespasser, Janet. “Ah, you're both here good." The mutant leader muttered as the two tribesmen made their way inside the room. Like the old soldier, they were followed by a pair of military constructs, a Lancer model for the woman, and a cloaked Assassin for the Mosul-bearer.

  Before they reached them, Steve quickly and quietly asked. “Does he know?” Nath just shook his head that their mutual friend didn’t.

  “Something I miss?” Erik asked them once he was closer.

  The mage ignored the question and walked over to insert the power-cell into the portal generator. As he did the Enhanced expined. "I was just giving my condolences before I left, Erik."

  Hearing the soldier's statement made Erik's face frown in sorrow before he muttered. "Right, that."

  “Condolences? Who died?" Janet asked as she looked around at everyone confused.

  "My childhood friend," Nath’aniel admitted. Before any other questions could be asked, the Citadel announced.

  “Portal to the Captain’s bedroom will open in three minutes.”

  The mage then rubbed his hands together, as he stated. "Well, it has been a pleasure meeting the both of you, regardless of the dangers and misunderstandings that surrounded the event."

  However, Steve interrupted his goodbye, stating. “You cannot be pnning to send us both through at the same time are you?”

  Nath’aniel frowned before he asked. “Why not?”

  “The army is still watching my pce right?” The Enhanced asked. Both the mage and Erik nodded. "Well then, because she’s married and I am single, and it wouldn’t be proper to have an attractive married woman seen exiting my apartment in the middle of the night. It would tarnish her reputation.”

  "Steven it is fine I can just shrink down before…" The woman began to say.

  Yet the mage cut her off stating. “Do not say before you enter the portal. It was sheer luck that you weren’t vaporized by the conflicting energies from your abilities and the magic field.” The three tribespeople of the nd look at him strangely after his stern outburst.

  Then after a moment, the woman asked. "Ok, how about once I am on the other side?"

  "That would be fine," Nath'aniel admitted.

  "I still don't feel right, a married woman in my bedroom." The super soldier compined.

  Erik cpped a hold on the rger man's shoulder and reminded Steve. "It's not the 1940s anymore, my friend. People are not as strict as they once were."

  As he finished speaking the building's mystical energy coalesced together and the portal was formed. On the other side was a rge-sized bed, meant for two or three people, and a headboard. Before leaving Steve and Erik shared a dwarven greeting, and the soldier offered another to the mage, which he returned. Then he and the Mosul-bearing woman passed through the portal, one after the other.

  New York- Milos Bread and Bean coffee shop, March 27, 2008 (02:55)

  Nichos ‘Nick’ Fury

  Nick looked over the files that Agent Moonstar had received as part of SHIELD’s request for Entreatment Day. While not detailed, it was page after page of the most basic information on all of the various races that the Magi were aware of and had met. He at first thought it all some kind of fantastical joke, until flip to the st page of any one report and there sat photos of the Magi speaking and eating with said creatures.

  He frowned at the odd ceramic masks that the supposed 'dark' elves were wearing. His phone suddenly going off made him look away. Still, he deyed answering to take a sip of his perfectly blended coffee. Yet when he saw the number that was calling him, he quickly reached for his flip phone and opened it to receive the call.

  "Van Dyne, do you know how much crap I have received from you disappearing. It's like every two hours either your husband or Captain America is calling asking for an update. Where the hell were you?" The director barked into his old model phone. It may not have all the digital gadgets that modern smartphones have, but it was so heavily modified that it probably worked far better than even the test models.

  “I was with Captain Rogers. The one that has been bugging you was actually Mystique in disguise.” Janet told him coldly.

  He wanted to swear, he wanted to ask if there was a chance to capture the shape-shifter, even though he doubted it, instead, he asked. "Where are you now?"

  “At a friend’s apartment in Brooklyn, I needed some clothes after trying to tail the fake Steve.” The female agent admitted.

  "Text me the address, and I will have a car pick you up and bring you to me," Fury ordered her. He then pulled out a memo pad, an old habit from his own time as a field agent.

  When the text came through he wrote it down, before he sent instruction to a team that he had on standby. He made it clear that they were to only escort Janet to him, and not to cause a scene at the stranger’s apartment.

  He then put both his memo pad away and returned his phone to sit beside his coffee, before returning to the report in front of him. He got through two more entries before having to take a break. As only reading the following entry's title had him feeling a small stab of guilt and caution, making him question whether he should honestly read it or not.

  ‘Angels’. He both read again and thought to himself. Fury never really thought of himself as a religious man, but reading a supposedly neutral observer's opinion of such a myth even gave him some pause. Yet before he could make his decision the bell attached to the shop’s door chimed, alerting him that his team and Van Dyne had arrived. So he instead closed the report entirely, before sitting back.

  As the field agents got closer, he signaled for them to wait by the door, while Janet continued over towards him. Once she was near his little wooden table, Fury asked her. “You call your family?”

  She nodded before stating. "I told Hank that you gave me a st-minute mission, that was code word bck, and that I had to leave the country. He didn't like it but admitted that he had done the same to me, when he was a field agent. While I told my daughter that a friend of mine was in trouble and I had to help them."

  The director nodded before motioning for her to sit across from him. He then listened to her report and her actions after the initial moments of the Hydra attack. About how she had pnned to reveal herself to the good captain, but with the aid of Iron Man and then the two strangers and how she eventually decided to tail them when the young blue teen teleported Captain America away. Still, Nick wasn't surprised when she revealed that indeed the super soldier had join and chatted with his old war buddy, Magneto.

  Yet he was, when she reported seeing not only Peggy Charter but also Doctor Ross at the eventual meet-up. While the director was furious about such a btant betrayal, he didn't show it outwardly. Instead, he just took another sip of his coffee.

  “So you heard nothing of the Captain’s results from the mage’s checkup?” Fury asked the woman.

  “No, sir. I felt continued observation of them was more important than any details I may have picked up.” Janet confessed. Hearing that he snapped his fingers, and an agent in the back area of the coffee house fired up a coffee maker and started another pot of coffee for them.

  ‘So much for swinging by the kid’s pce and seeing how she is doing before school.’ Fury thought, before asking her. “What did you learn then?”

  Next, she then reported that the Brotherhood left New York, via a hole in the air, or magic portal she learned it called ter. Janet then confirmed Barton's suspicions that the Citadel was much rger than they thought and that the Brotherhood had recruited additional members to their group, thirteen members that she saw personally. That did not include Nath'aniel, himself or his two female bodyguards, or his small army of robots.

  The revetion of her capture and the crippling effects of the mage’s ‘Truth’ spell worried him, as she told them. “It’s far worse than any serum or drug. There is no resisting it, it makes you want to answer and you feel joy when speaking truthfully.”

  “So he knows everything?” The director asked for confirmation.

  “Yes sir.” She admitted, shame covering her face. She didn’t go into any details, as the sound of Coulson walking over to them reminded her that only Fury and Hill knew she was a mutant.

  His right hand put down an empty mug in front of her, as he refilled Fury's own. Janet covered it her's with a hand, before the man nodded and returned to the back area behind the bar. Once the agent was far enough away she continued unprompted.

  Expining her ‘punishment’ for trespassing being some simple fashion designs, which got a chuckle out Fury. As he poured him creamer and some sugar she reported something that really did surprise him completely when Janet admitted. “I would have been returned st night instead of tonight, but the X-men attacked them during the day yesterday.” When he squinted at her with his good eye, she added. "Not really a full-on battle, more like a small skirmish. Although the details were not made clear to me, as I was busy working off my fines.”

  Hearing that made him lean back and mutter. “So the mutant civil war continues.”

  Janet shrugged before saying. "Well they clearly not full-on enemies, since a few of them stayed behind once everything was done to request something for Entreatment Day… and since I saw Agent Moonstar and Morse I assume we also got something out of the mage this morning.”

  It took a rge measure of effort to not look at or move the report beside him. ‘Am I getting rusty?’ he pondered before stating. "We did, but it is Level 9 clearance only, unfortunately." ‘Not that I would admit to her that she would get that once becoming a member of the Avengers.’ He thought while she nodded her head in understanding.

  She squirmed in her seat for a bit before asking. “And after all that has happened, what shall I do going forward?”

  Nick straightened his suit jacket before stating. "We will continue as pnned. You will act as Steve's liaison as before, part-time. What you do with the rest of your time is up to you, but we must quash this adventure of his as best we can. The WSC cannot hear of his strong ties with Magneto if we are at all hopeful of them approving him to the Avengers." She nodded at that, and then he added. "These two agents will take you home once I have a word with them."

  Janet nodded again, before getting up and moving for the front entrance of the coffee shop. Her escorts approached him, and once they were close enough he said. "What you just overheard is level 8 clearance only, and I don’t need to tell you what will happen if you leak do I?”

  One agent just shook his head, while the other muttered. “No sir, I won’t breathe a word of it.”

  A moment after they all left, Coulson joined him with his own cup of coffee, muttering. "Captain America friends with a terrorist. Got to say, I didn't see that coming."

  "Cap was friends with a man before he became a terrorist." Fury corrected.

  They both took a sip of their coffee before his right hand asked. "What's next for me?"

  The director deyed with another sip of coffee, before sliding the report to the other man and said. "Confirm anything in that you that you can."