Game in Marvel
174

"Lady Frigga," Ancient One said with a respectful nod. "It is an honor."

"The honor is mine, Ancient One," Frigga replied. "You sent me a message that stirred my heart. I see now what you meant." The Ancient One's eyes drifted briefly to Ciri, then to Thor, and finally to Liam.

"I have news," she said. "About Barton."

"Is he… stable?" Liam stepped forward. 

"For now. The rituals we've begun are containing the transformation. But this is not simple, nor is it something we can fully purge with magic. The dark magic infused in him is deep—woven into his essence."

"Is there an end to it?" Liam asked. 

"Perhaps. But not in the way you imagine. We might be able to transform him back to his human form—but whether the change is permanent… I cannot promise that. He might have to live with a shadow of that other self. Always lingering. Always near."

Thor muttered a curse in Asgardian under his breath.

"So… what you're saying is," Liam said slowly, "we can bring him back, but he'll never be just Barton again."

"Precisely," the Ancient One confirmed. "And it will take time. Time to study this transformation. Time to prepare countermeasures. If we rush, we might lose him entirely. Or worse—leave him in a state neither human nor monster."

"And if it turns out he can't be cured?" Ciri asked. She had never had any contact with Barton, but she felt sympathy. 

"Then we must prepare for a future where Clint Barton walks a different path," the Ancient One said softly. "One that diverges from the life he once knew."

"That is a heavy burden to place upon anyone." Frigga replied as she and Thor were updated of the ins and outs.

"It is," the Ancient One agreed. "But it is one we must be willing to share. That's why I brought him here—to keep him safe while we work. But I must be honest about the possibilities. You all need to be prepared."

"I'll help however I can," Liam said.

"I know you will," the Ancient One replied. "But for now, we will let Barton rest. When the time comes, I will inform you." 

Frigga took a deep breath, looking at the group, especially at Ciri.

"I believe I've done what I came to do," she said gently. "Though I wish you had accepted my offer, child."

"I still might," Ciri replied. "Just… not now."

"Then I shall hold you to that. I will have a place ready in Asgard whenever you choose."

"Mother, you're leaving?" Thor asked. 

"I must," she said. "There are things that need tending to. And you will stay I suppose."

"I will Mother, I have missed the previous one, and I don't want to miss the excitement." Thor replied. 

"Try not to destroy anything too valuable." Frigga said. 

"No promises," Thor said with a smirk.

"You are more than a sorcerer now. You are a nexus for change. For war and peace alike. Protect them, as you always have." Frigga said while looking at Liam which surprised him a bit. He didn't think she would keep eyes on him too. 

"I'll try, my lady." Liam replied with embarrassment. At the courtyard, the Rainbow bridge came down and she then vanished from Earth itself. The courtyard grew quieter after the brilliance of the Bifrost vanished into the sky. 

"Come, child. Walk with me." the Ancient One spoke. Ciri looked to Liam, then gave a small nod. 

"Alright."

"I sense that your magic works differently," the Ancient One began. "Raw. Untamed. Yours is the storm before it learns to become rain." She said that as she move through the halls of Kamar Taj. 

"It's... not something I trained for. It just came to me. When I was a child, it was terrifying. I still don't fully control it."

"That is common with magic born of ancient blood. You carry power older than the language we speak. It resists structure. It resists… teaching. But Kamar Taj does not just teach spells. We teach perspective. Balance. The ability to know oneself."

"I know who I am." Ciri replied as she felt offended that the Ancient One would even insinuate that. 

"Do you?" The Ancient One replied. "Do you know what you are capable of becoming? Or are you still reacting to the fears others placed in you?"

Ciri hesitated a bit on that. 

"Sometimes… I feel like I'm just surviving. Getting through the next danger. I don't think I've ever had the chance to stop and ask who I want to be." Which was the truth. She had been running for so long she didn't even remember when she stopped to take rest. 

She ran from Cintra, from the men who wanted to kill her and end the bloodline. Then came her father, who was searching for her in order to give her the throne that she never wanted. And at the end, the terrifying Wild Hunt. 

"Then this is a place to begin," the Ancient One said softly. "You do not need to join the order. You do not need to wear robes or take vows. But you can observe. Learn. Practice. There are things here that may help you—tools to temper the storm."

Ciri stepped into the room slowly. She looked at the students—one drawing perfect circles in the air with their hands, another manipulating a teacup to break and then join together again. 

"Would I even be able to do what they're doing?" she asked.

"Perhaps not as they do it," the Ancient One replied, "but in your own way. Magic responds not just to knowledge, but to belief. Intuition. Intent."

Liam had noticed all of that and thus told Ciri that she could be here until she was ready to be back. Ciri nodded as she felt that she needed some alone time while Liam would go back to the Stark tower and deliver the response that he had received from the Ancient One.