The atmosphere was tense as Tina formed her Tao Mandala, already in her stance while I stared at the Moon Knight who glared between the two of us.
'Is this Marc Spector or Steven Grant or whatever the third one's name is? No, Marc only became Moon Knight in 2022 after he nearly got killed by Bushman, I believe.
That means that this is either Arthur Harrow...or one that did not show in the original series,' Given how many changes there were already to the canon, I was not surprised if there was a change, but as I watched the figure pull out a pair of Crescent Blades from his emblem, something told me that this might be the former rather than the latter.
"Uh, hello. We come in peace?"
"If you come in peace, you should leave and never return."
"And who are you to say so?"
"I am the Avatar of the god whose temple you are standing in."
"Khonshu? So, this is the Egyptian god of the moon's temple? Then you...must be the Moon Knight, the Fist of Vengeance and champion of the innocent who walk through the night," Tina spoke and I blinked at that before remembering that she belonged to a world that dealt with otherworldly and godlike figures on a daily basis.
'Right, the gods are real to them so of course, they'd know everything about them.'
"And what if I am?"
"Then you should know that the Masters of the Mystic Arts and Khonshu's avatars have fought side by side once against the forces of darkness."
"I was not told of such a thing," Moon Knight responded and I glanced at Tina who looked back.
'Do we do anything?'
'I don't know. This is my first time actually meeting a Moon Knight.'
'Okay, then.'
"Well, it is lovely to meet you. Can I ask what happens now?"
"If you are allies of Khonshu, then you will leave his temple."
"Of course. We were simply here to check a hint that we got on the Book of Vishanti."
"What is that?"
"Uh, just something we Masters of the Mystic Arts covet. Unfortunately, if this is Khonshu's temple, then I don't believe it will be real," Tina spoke with a smile before she turned and walked away, leaving me staring at the Moon Knight who looked back.
'I wonder. Am I fast enough to hit him or is he fast enough to hit back?'
"Pietro, I can see what you're thinking and let's just leave before you pick a f-"
"Wait," I raised an eyebrow as Moon Knight called out, Tina doing the same before I narrowed my eyes as I saw his gaze flickering to our right.
Boosting myself to my maximum speed while glancing in that direction, the only thing I saw was a flicker in the air, dashing over and reaching forward to grab onto whatever was there.
As my hand passed through whatever it was, I narrowed my eyes as I sped up the vibration of my hand, doing it at the same frequency as the vibrations I felt from the figure.
Reaching forward, I grinned as I found myself grabbing onto the figure in question, watching as their form became visible.
"Who...are you?", The god dressed in ceremonial white battle armour with a white cloak spoke in a surprised tone, his bony bird-shaped head floating above his body as it was missing a neck and wielding a staff that had a crescent-shaped crest at the end with the tips pointing upwards.
"I am nothing more than a guy that can run fast," I spoke, but my bravado was just a front as the sheer weight of the god's presence made it hard to breathe.
"And yet you touched me. Few mortals can perceive me when I am hidden and none can drag me into their sight."
'Right, that was a stupid idea,' I thought as I let go, watching as Khonshu just looked at me before I turned to see Tina standing with a frown as Moon Knight bowed his head.
"Khonshu."
"Arthur. I see that you have been guarding my temple as I requested."
'Okay, so it is Arthur Harrow,' I thought as I watched Arthur stand up straight and nod.
"It has been months since I last saw you."
"Unfortunately, I have been busy, but I have returned," Even as he spoke, the god did not turn his gaze from me as I walked over to Tina, who looked slightly worried when Khonshu tilted his head.
"The Masters of the Mystic Arts, I see. I have not parleyed with your kind since the time of Agamotto and his disciples. Why do you trespass in my sanctum?"
"We humbly apologize for doing so, Lord Khonshu, but our master was told that the Book of Vishanti was rumoured to be here."
"Clearly, you were misled. The Book is not mine nor would I suffer its presence. My domain is that of the moon and vengeance, nothing more."
"Okay, then. I guess we can leave unless you plan on smiting us for stepping inside? If so, can we formally request a ten-second head start?", I joked, sweating a bit as Khonshu tilted his head almost as if he was considering it before he let out a low, rasping chuckle.
"Tell me, silver mortal. Do you run towards the truth or away from the pain that plagues you?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"You carry loss in your veins like quicksilver and hide it behind your speed, but even if you can outrun the world itself, your shadow and your past will always follow. Therefore, do you run to the truth that you yearn for that will help you understand your life or do you run from the past that causes you harm whenever you think of it?"
"I hate this game. Also, I thought gods were supposed to be subtle in their questions?"
"No one does and I am not a god of subtlety. Expect none from me."
"Right. Well, my answer is the latter."
"No."
"No?", I asked and Khonshu nodded as I watched an ethereal white glow shine in his eyes for a second.
"No, I believe it is the former. You say that you run from your past, but I do not think so. You run towards any truth you can find, no matter if it is good or bad as long as it gives you answers.
Once you find those answers, though, how will you change, I wonder?"
"Do you know the answers I'm looking for?"
"I do."
"Will you tell me?"
"For a price, yes," He nodded and I smirked at the greed I could taste in his voice before I shook my head.
"Nah. Like you said, I'll find the answers myself so I might as well enjoy not being your champion. Besides, I wouldn't want to rob Arthur here of his job," I said while nodding to Arthur, who had been silent as Tina finally cleared her throat.
"Apologies, Lord Khonshu, but we must be going now or else, the Ancient One is going to come looking for us."
"Of course. Give my regards to Aria," I was not surprised to find out that Khonshu knew the Ancient One's name as Tina opened a portal, following through after her before raising an eyebrow at the desert around us.
Just as quickly as she closed the portal behind her, she opened another, which led into a forest. This process continued for the next few minutes before we finally stepped out into the centre of the Hong Kong Sanctum, a chuckle escaping my lips as Tina closed the portal and let out a relieved sigh.
"Can you please not draw the attention of a god next time?"
"Next time? So you enjoyed going on this expedition with me?", I asked, snickering as she just rolled her eyes and started walking to her office.
"At least we now know that the rumour was just a rumour."
'Or someone wants us to run around while they are busy with something else,' I thought as I remembered where the information came from, the world around me slowing down as I shot out the door.
The world around me blurred as I shot through the streets, each step bringing me closer and closer to my destination as cities vanished and was replaced by forests and grass within mere seconds.
Yet, as I arrived at Kamar-Taj, I found that barely a minute had passed when I rushed towards Aria's office, opening it to find myself staring at three frozen figures in said room.
Wanda was the first I noticed, a disinterested frown on her face as she sat in the chair in front of Aria's desk. Speaking of the Ancient One, she sat in her chair behind the desk and opposite of Wanda, but it was the third figure that made me frown as she stood beside the desk with a smile.
Clad in a hooded, light violet cloak that showed off only her hands, feet, face and dark purple hair, I watched as the goddess turned her head to stare at me with a smile, her eyes shimmering with the iridescence of hundreds of stars.
"Pietro Maximoff, the anomaly that has brought my family here," Her voice sounded otherworldly as she spoke and I frowned even as I walked closer and kept my super speed going.
"You must be the Oshtur I've heard so much about, then. I would say pleased to meet you, but you did send me on a wild goose chase while trying to talk to my sister behind my back."
"Something I did not take pride in doing, but if it meant that Wanda and I could talk in peace without your presence manipulating her mind, then I would take the risk."
"I would not. Unlike what you think, I wouldn't have mind if Wanda did take you up on your offer. I just don't like it when you try to do so without me present so that I can make sure you're not manipulating her mind to make her do so," I responded, watching as the goddess giggled before she turned towards me.
"Is that so? And yet, you know that your sister values your opinion above all and that she has known you long enough to know that if you show even a sign of disapproval, she will disagree and decide on not accepting my offer."
"I do, yes, but I also know that Wanda needs as much help as she can get in controlling her Chaos Magic before something bad happens."
"So, you agree that she is to undergo the training needed to become the Scarlet Witch?"
"No, I said that she needs to learn how to control her magic, not how to become this prophesied reality warper that will take control or help the universe simply because fate deemed it so," I answered with a shake of my head and I watched as the first negative emotion in the form of a frown appeared on her face.
"So, you would stop your sister from fulfilling her destiny?"
"See, that's the thing with you gods. It's always destiny this, destiny that for us mortals and when shit hits the fan because of your doing, then it's no longer your problem, is it? 'No, it is simply fate that she turned evil. Oh, let me reset the timeline and try again.'
So, let ME, the mortal Pietro Maximoff, tell you something today. We are not in some cosmic script to be moved around until the story looks pretty. If she wants to train with you, she will. If she doesn't want to train with you, she won't. If she decides to not train at all and instead go down a path that doesn't hurt others, she can and there's not a damn thing you will do about it.
I don't care if you are a mortal like me or the strongest being in existence. The very second you start thinking that you can try and manipulate her, rest assured that I will grab you and I will show you things that even the devils below our feet would cower in fear from. Am I clear?", I asked with a frown as I stood chest to chest with the goddess, taking note of how my speed aura sparked and pushed against her own.
Instead of looking amused or angered by my words, I raised an eyebrow as the goddess laughed, the sound of it eerie yet comforting to my ears as she shook her head.
"No being other than my siblings have spoken to me like that. Most would kneel and pray and yet, you bare your teeth and snarl like a wolf that refuses to yield."
"Because unlike you gods, I don't get any second chances when I fuck up. I have to live with my mistakes and my losses and I'll be damned if I let you write my sister's life like one of the little myths you gods are so fond of following."
"Do you know why I called you an anomaly, Pietro Maximoff?", She asked and I narrowed my eyes at the shift in conversation as I shook my head.
"No, I just assumed it's because I'm different."
"In a sense, yes. In every timeline and every universe I've witnessed, there is one Chaos Magic user no matter where it is."
"Why don't I like what you're about to say?"
"It's because in this timeline and universe, there are two. One of them is, as like in many others, the Scarlet Witch. However, the second..."
"Is me?", I asked, already shaking my head when she smirked amusedly at my words.
"You spoke of defying fate despite not knowing that you've already done so. Two Chaos Magic users in the same timeline. I do wonder if that is how you were able to pull Khonshu from his cloaking."
'And she knows about that. Of course, she does.'
"And what does that mean? I can now fire hex bolts like Wanda?"
"No, each Chaos Magic user's abilities are attuned to their innate abilities. Wanda is a spellcaster at heart. That is why she is able to manipulate reality on a whim.
You, however, are a runner, a speedster that does not let the laws of fate and destiny tie him down and your magic embodies that.
Have you not noticed how your speed has been growing slightly with ever passing day despite you not attempting to train?", She asked and I frowned as I nodded. It wasn't hard to notice that I could go faster and faster on a daily basis, but I just assumed that would reach its own end once I reached my prime.
"Wanda's Chaos is born of weaving possibilities into inevitabilities. Yours is born of motion, threading through time and space and tugging at the seams. Together, the two of you are a dyad when there should only have been one, a path that moves at its own pace and wherever it wishes."
"So the board has changed. What does that mean for her?"
"Even now, you care for your sister."
"When our parents died, I promised that I would take care of her. That has not changed," I answered with a frown and she looked at me with a smirk before she placed a hand against my chest.
"You are fascinating, Pietro Maximoff. Perhaps, when the time comes and you finally unlock the truth, I will come to see Chaos Magic be used in a myriad of ways."
"Sure. Wait, do you know to do what I am looking for?"
"Seek That Which Protects the Ancient City of Warriors. Once you see the ever-changing forest, fight the guardian of the City and the Protector will restore you to what you should be. Now, are you going to stay?", She asked and I looked at her for a moment before turning and running around, feeling more relaxed in letting her continue her talks with Wanda.
'Seek That Which Protects the Ancient City of Warriors? What is that?', I thought as I raced away from Nepal and in the opposite direction of Hong Kong, instead making my way to the desert where a friend would be watching.
It did not take me more than a minute or two before I found the area that I destroyed, staring at the now dark trench still carved through the land.
Turning my gaze away from it, I began looking around, wanting to see if I can see the one I'm looking for. To my surprise, I turned again and jumped at the face that stood in front of me, giving Makkari a flat stare as she giggled at my expression.
"Could you not do that?"
"It's more fun," She wrote into the sand and I shook my head before an idea came to mind as I crouched down beside her.
"Hey, do you think you could teach me Sign Language? It would be better for the both of us since we wouldn't have to constantly write in the sand."
"Do you think you are patient enough to learn it?"
"Not really, but I'm motivated enough so I think that should be enough."
"It will be hard and long to learn," She responded, to which I smirked and felt the world slow down, Makkari smiling as her golden aura rippled against my silver-blue one.
"We have lots of time. So, what's the first lesson?"
'I could ask her about the city...but let's build up that friendship first before I do so. Besides, I'm sure Wenwu knows about it...I think.'
A/N: And we end it off here~! We have met Moon Knight and Khonshu, met Oshtur and now we're becoming friends with Makkari!
Next chapter, The City.
Like always, you can go to my Pat-reon-.-com-/-KingCrimsonNova to read ahead on this as well as many other stories & even some that haven't been released out to this site yet. If you want to, you are free to, but if you don't want, all's good as I will still be uploading here. This is just me trying to get some extra cash.
As always, read, enjoy, review and until next week...
Ba-Bye~!