Game in Marvel
172

Ciri took another bite of the food, chewing slowly as her eyes flicked over to the staff resting in the corner of the room.

"You really did upgrade that thing, huh?" she said. "You weren't lying when you said you have been taught by an elf before. What did you add there?" 

"Vibranium. Jotunheim sigils. A bit of Bifrost energy," Liam replied and then went on to explain of what these things were and the more Ciri heard, the more fascinated she was. She didn't know that the man she fancied had so much knowledge. 

No wonder his eyes always glowed with rainbow and so did his hand. Did he even poop rainbows? Wait that was boys humor. What happened to her?

"You're a walking cheat, Liam." Ciri said by the end.

"I prefer the term 'versatile.'"

They chuckled together before the silence returned—not awkward, just… warm. Familiar.

"You know, I've been thinking," she said. "About this world."

Liam raised a brow. "Yeah?"

"I mean… the sorcerers here. They don't use chaos. They don't draw from the same source we do. And yet—they bend time, space, reality." Liam had already explained about the magic and since she had met the Ancient One, she was more curious.

"You're talking about the Ancient One," Liam guessed. 

"Yeah. I want to see it for myself," she said. "Not just hear stories or wait around until one of them shows up in a fight. I want to go. I want to visit this… Kamar-Taj."

"That's a serious place, Ciri. Not a sightseeing tour." Liam said. 

"I know," she said. "But if possible I want to learn this magic if it's not as dangerous as the chaos magic. I have been running around a long time and don't want to only rely on my blood." Ciri said. 

"You want to train with them?" Liam looked amused.

"I trained with witchers. Survived the Wild Hunt. Crossed dimensions. I think I can handle a few floating monks and sparkly portals," she teased.

"Alright, alright. I'll see what I can do. No promises though—the Ancient One doesn't exactly hand out guest passes.

"That's all I ask."

"You know, Liam," she said with a sly smile, "for someone who doesn't like emotions… you're very good at making a girl feel seen."

That caught him off guard. This was because what Liam just said was very basic things, which he would even do for his friends. But then he realized, since it was the old ages, the bar was set very low for women's expectations of men. Even in modern society, the expectations had been changing over time as men were expected to do more for the relationship instead of being dead beat as it once was. 

Or at least, that was the stereotype. 

After the plates were cleared and the last of the dishes.

Liam stood and walked over to the corner where his staff rested. He picked it up, giving it a small twirl in his hand—just enough to stir the Red within.

"Ready?" he asked, glancing at Ciri. She rose to her feet without hesitation, tying her hair back with a practiced flick.

"Always."

With a deep breath, Liam tapped the bottom of his staff against the floor and uttered in Quenya. Light rippled outward from the impact like a drop of water. The air tore topen, revealing a circular portal swirling with hues of gold and streaks of shifting blue

"Ladies first," he said.

Ciri rolled her eyes but stepped through, vanishing into the light. Liam followed, and the portal snapped shut behind them.

-----

The cool mountain air hit them immediately. Snow-dusted roofs, towering stone spires, and prayer flags fluttering lazily in the breeze greeted them. The courtyard was quiet, save for the soft chants echoing in the distance and the occasional footsteps of monks passing by.

Ciri took it all in with wide eyes.

"This place feels…" she paused, searching for the word, "centered."

"It is. The heart of this world's mystic arts. So the magic you sense, even though you don't know it yet, is quite powerful." Liam said as he too was able to feel the immense magic around. Before they could take another step, a familiar voice rang out.

"You're not exactly subtle when you open portals, Liam."

Mordo descended the temple steps as he said that. 

"Nice to see you too." Liam said. 

"The Ancient One is still busy with Barton." Mordo replied with his usual flat tone. "But you can go to the library and take a peek on the books. The Ancient One has given you full access." 

Liam turned to Ciri, ready to guide her toward the inner halls of the sanctuary, when something made him stop. He looked up. 

"What is it?" Ciri asked. 

Before he could answer, the sky above the courtyard cracked—literally. A shimmering ribbon of energy split the clouds. Wind whipped through the air as the Rainbow Bridge descended with force, slamming into the stone courtyard with a thunderous crash of light and sound. Ciri took a step back, her hand instinctively brushing the hilt of her sword.

Out of the beam stepped two figures.

Thor. And Frigga.

"Who are they?" Ciri was confused. 

"That's Thor. And… his mother." Liam replied. She was still confused about who they were. The Bifrost beam retracted in a dazzling sweep of light, leaving the courtyard eerily silent.

"You," Thor said. "You traitor!" 

"Wow, no hello first?" Liam asked back.

"You don't get to speak after not keeping the promise." Thor replied back. 

"What promise?" Liam asked back. 

"The promise to taking me to the trial. The promise of fighting warriors where I can swing my Mjolnir and crush them and gain their abilities." Thor said. 

"Have you been drinking too much? I have never promised that." Liam said, not intimidated at all. Ciri, who was ready to fight, finally realized what was going on. They were friends to begin with. No wonder the sorcerers around didn't exactly react when the light came down.

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