Chapter Text
"Well, someone's been here recently, and chances are, they either left something behind or are still here." My voice softly echoes through the tunnel as Onkel Loke and I share a look before turning to stare back down the seemingly endless tunnel that lies before us.
The tunnel yielded no secrets to us for a few miles before branches split off from the main path. Uncle Loki sends duplicates down each branch, and as we wait for them to return, the tunnel starts rumbling with the echo of a hundred synchronized footsteps.
"HYDRA," I whisper to my uncle, who wraps us in whisps of his magic as the footsteps continue to approach. "Borte?" (Gone?) The word uttered under my breath is enough to get my point across. Onkel Loke nods as he holds his hand in front of us for a brief moment, just long enough for me to be able to tell that he has made us invisible with his illusions.
The echo crescendos as the source of the footsteps appear in sight, rows upon rows of HYDRA soldiers in uniform marching their way down the tunnel. Other groups of soldiers join the larger one from the branch tunnels, falling in line as the first group passes.
As every soldier has their helmet and goggles on, it gives them a sense of facelessness, the loss of identity, that I sadly have come to expect from HYDRA. They take anything that they can, good, or bad, and twist it into an image of their creation. It's sickening.
The last row of soldiers passes us as the first has already left our sight, and it is another few minutes before the echo of the footsteps has vanished.
Letting out a breath, Onkel Loke dispels the illusion as his duplicates fade into the visible spectrum along with us.
They give their reports before being dismissed to return to investigating their respective tunnels.
"Are we going to continue or should we retreat and regroup to return another day?" I ask my uncle as we stand in the tunnel facing the direction the army originated.
"Let us continue until we have enough evidence that it warrants the entirety of our family and your father's team. Once we have that, we shall retreat." Onkel Loke gives me a quick and small smile before quietly marching down the tunnel once more.
"Wait up!" Laughing, I jog to catch up to the taller figure of the Jötun.
Onkel Loke and I continue down the main tunnel, where he sends duplicates down each branch we come across. After crossing another two or so miles since spotting the army, the tunnel starts to ascend before spotting an original traction freight elevator from wartime next to the stairwell.
"Stairs," We say at the same time before looking at each other with stunned expressions.
Giggling, I let Onkel Loke lead the way up the stairs as he coats us in another illusion.
Going up the seven flights of stairs, I made sure not to touch any of the handrails, and to not leave any fingerprints behind. At the top, we are greeted by a steel door that is worn down and dented.
"Stille sniking?" (Silent stealth)
"Faktisk, lille en." (Indeed, little one.) Onkel Loke confirms quietly as he opens the steel door. Creaking is heard as the old metal swings on its hinges. Pausing to see if any soldiers come, Uncle Loki does a little more magic to give us a trail to follow back when we leave.
Sticking together, we explore the unmarked corridors and peek into whatever rooms are along them.
The first room search didn't turn up anything that we have to be concerned about, as it was a simple mess hall. Same as the second through eighteenth rooms are what you expect in a secluded military base; barracks, storage for food, weapons storage (which we searched thoroughly), and the list goes on.
It's not until the nineteenth room that HYDRA's secret projects start popping up in the form of a war room. A large pine wood table covered in documents and a few abandoned computers allow the two of us to take a peek into the current plans of some of HYDRA's middle brass.
One specific pile of papers draws my attention due to a sliver of a photograph peeking out. An all-too-familiar brown bowler hat, a little bit of the blue eye that I used to know, and the edge of an ever-trimmed mustache.
"Er det Dum Dum Dugan? Nei, det kan ikke være... han må være død nå." (Is that Dum Dum Dugan? No, it can't be... he must be dead by now.) Whispering, I slowly push the papers out of the way to fully reveal my old comrade's picture.
Scanning the related document, one sentence stands out: 'Klon von Timothy Aloysius Cadwallader „Dum Dum“ Dugan in der Endphase der Programmierung.' (Clone of Timothy Aloysius Cadwallader "Dum Dum" Dugan in final stages of programming.) What?
The corners of my vision fade into darkness as it feels like everything that I thought I knew about this new world shifted. Nothing changed. HYDRA remains, hurting those whom I care about, and yet, what have I been doing? Exploring another 'new world'... If I can't even save those who fought alongside me, then what good am I to those who can't fight? Why do I keep fighting, if this is what happ-
"Marge, lille en, kom tilbake til meg. Fokuser på stemmen min." (Marge, small one, come back to me. Focus on my voice.) Onkel Loke's voice breaks through my thoughts, slamming my head back into reality.
Taking in a shaky breath, I brace my fists against the offending pile of papers in front of me as Onkel Loke places his hand lightly on my back.
"How dare they?!" Turning to Onkel Loke, I look into his familiar green eyes, "Is it possible to get them out?"
"Not all of them, perhaps a select few. We shall see which of your previous companions have a tvilling (twin) that is a victim here. Angir papiret hvor de er plassert?" (Does the paper state where they are located?) He runs his hand up and down my back in a comforting manner as he speaks.
"De er i den vestlige tunnelen av komplekset, under streng bevoktning til 'programmeringen' er ferdig. Tror du de vaktene dro sammen med de andre?" (They're in the west tunnel of the compound, under strict guard until the 'programming' is done. Do you think those guards left with the others?) I run my finger over the German letters as a plan of attack and rescue begins to form within my head.
"Lite sannsynlig. Vi skal imidlertid være årvåkne." (Unlikely. However, we shall remain vigilant.) With that, Onkel Loke uses his magic to cancel the illusion he has been maintaining over our clothes, revealing that we came in full battle regalia instead of looking like lost hikers. Pulling out my sword, I grin at my uncle and we make our way back to the tunnel, but not before grabbing the incriminating papers from the pine wood table and stuffing them into my sword sheath in a roll.
Once we make our way back to the intersection of the tunnel, we head down the west tunnel after a quick spell to reveal which tunnel that is.
On the way down the tunnel, Onkel Loke dispelled the invisibility, as we will simply be taking everyone down before rescuing the new versions of the Howling Commandos.
The first group of HYDRA agents we came across were wiped out in less than two minutes, and we prevented them from sounding the alarm to evacuate the base. Every group follows a similar fate as we make our way to the chambers holding the clones of my fellow Howling Commandos.
Each HYDRA agent we came across only led us closer and closer to the chambers.
Within an hour, all agents we encountered were taken out, and Onkel Loke and I were standing in front of the door that blocks altered versions of my past comrades from us.
"Vil du at jeg skal slå dem ut før du går inn?" (Do you want me to knock them out before you enter?) Uncle Loki asks me quietly, interrupting the deep, 'calming' breaths that I was taking in preparation.
My breath leaves in a rush along with any excess stress is answer enough for my uncle, as he gently guides me to lean against the worn stone brick wall before entering the door. He must cast a silencing spell, as there is no sound escaping through the tiny cracks in the door.
Placing a hand on the door jam, the minutes drag by as the stress builds once more.
(YouTube link to a photo for this section: )
Once the door opens and Onkel Loke pokes his head out to give me a nod, that's when time speeds back up, especially when it comes to actually entering the blasted room.
The room is a horrendous sight, something that I expected to stay in the war, rather than following me into the present time. No bedframes, just flattened, worn straw mattresses on the floor. The sadly familiar smell of human excrement penetrates the entire floor along with a thick layer of dirt covering everything.
The men aren't much better than where they have been imprisoned. Covered in dirt-crusted rags and with matted hair and beards.
Tearing up, I ask Uncle Loki to clean them up as they are human beings and don't deserve this. With a small, sad smirk, he complies with my tear-filled request.
Once the nine men are cleaned up, Onkel Loke levitates them out of the room, while I am tasked with clearing the path for them on the way out of the compound.
It is a shorter trip on the way out than it was on the way in, the hardest part was getting up the ladder with Onkel Loke putting most of his thought process into raising the Commandos through the shaft. This was solved by Onkel Loke climbing onto my back, and I climbed the ladder for the both of us. I never realized just how heavy he was!
At the top, the trek back to the quinjet went even faster than the second journey through the tunnels. We get the men strapped into various seats in the main cabin, mainly having them lay down to prevent any possible injuries from getting aggravated.
"La oss komme igang. Jo raskere vi kan få dem i gang med behandling, jo bedre." (Let's get going. The sooner we can get them started with treatment, the better.) Uncle Loki nods as he buckles himself into the co-pilot's seat.
Taking my place in the pilot's seat, I get the engine of the quinjet started and quickly get us off the ground.
Once we get back to the Avengers Tower, Onkel Loke takes the Commandos into the med-bay while he signals for me to go elsewhere.
Heading to the main common room that the team uses, I take a deep breath in preparation for what I have to tell Papa.
Seeing that the physically older blond is seated on the couch facing the window wall, small and quiet steps announce my arrival into the room.
"Marge! How'd your mission go?" Pops asks me as he turns in place to look at me, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Refusing to vocally answer, I instead pull the papers from my sword sheath and hand them over to my first father figure.
The blond takes them with trepidation, seeing pictures of the Commandos, before slowly reading the incriminating words from HYDRA.
"Did... did you save them?" Sighing, I give a soft smile and nod before answering.
"Yes, Uncle Loki and I brought them back here. We're planning to have the Asgardian healers look at them and see how they're doing. Hopefully, they can be introduced to the families of the Commandos, and integrated into society. That's the very hopeful plan, but if anything doesn't work, we'll figure something out from there."
With a wet grin, Papa brings me into a tight hug, as my wings don't give me the ability anymore.
"Why don't you let your wings out, change into your vest, and we'll go on a run?"
"Okay, that sounds good."
We share smiles before going separate ways out of the common room.
While on the run, I see the Bi-Frost landing on the tower. Smiling at the fact that the new Commandos are getting help, I focus back on the run, realizing that Pops is many blocks ahead of me now.
"Go ahead, I'll meet you at the Tower later!" I yell to the blond, who looks back and gives a thumbs up.
Tucking myself under a window awning to avoid the crowd, I take a deep breath, scowling at the feeling of the vest constricting my wings' movement.
Feeling a vibration in my pocket, I pull out my flip phone, which Tony constantly wants to confiscate and destroy. Checking the main screen, it seems to be a text. I wonder who's texting me.
Opening the text, it is revealed to be from Peter Parker.
"'Hey, it's Peter! Parker, that is... um, I saw the giant light hit Stark/Avengers Tower. Are you back in town? If u r, awesome! Come ovr + visit! If u aren't, visit when u get bk!'" Furrowing my brows at the slightly confusing wording. It says to visit, not entirely sure what else, but I'm sure of that. Eh, why not?
Sending my own text to Papa, I hit the call button for Peter.
"Marge! You're back! Are you in New York?" His voice cracked from excitement, causing me to laugh, "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. Are you in the city or not?"
"Yeah, I am. I'm calling because I need directions to your apartment. Jae's the one with the fancy phone that has such things built in."
"Alright. Where are you right now?"
After fifty minutes of confusing directions, Peter finally leads me to an area of Queens that looks familiar from the first visit.
"I think I've got it from here. is Elizabeth over with you?" Asking over the phone, I navigate through the smaller crowd until a certain apartment building is in sight.
"Yep. Plus our other friend, Ned, if that's alright... I can ask him to go home if that's what you want." Peter's voice is filled with panic and a touch of anxiety.
"Do you trust him? Does he know about Elizabeth?" Entering the building, I quiet my voice, to not disturb others.
"No, but if he ever does, I'm sure that he'll be okay with it!" Chuckling at the younger teenager's innocence, I enter the stairwell and begin the climb.
"Well, let's use his reaction to me as an experiment; if he reacts well, the future is positive for sharing that secret; but if not, I don't suggest telling him in that case. It's harsh, but needs must."
With silence on the other side of the phone, I reach the desired floor.
"Peter, I know that you want to tell him, and you'd be free to if it was your secret, but it's not. It's Elizabeth's. It's a secret to keep her and her family safe. You must understand that." Standing in the hallway outside the Parker family apartment, I keep my flip phone up to my ear.
"I do... I just don't want there to be any more boundaries between us. It's bad enough that we get teased for being friends, but I feel like the closer Liza and I get, the more excluded Ned is... I don't want to lose either of them." Softening my voice, I nearly whisper into the phone's microphone.
"I know, Peter, truly. Would you like to continue this in person? Or finish the conversation over the phone before I enter your home?"
Hearing a soft sniffle, "You're here? Oh, just a sec." He then hangs up the call.
There are some muffled words and noises heard through the door before Peter opens it. Once he does, I get a full view of lightly red-rimmed brown eyes and ruffled brown hair.
"Oh, Peter. Come here." Opening my arms for a hug, Peter dives into my embrace.
"Peter, who's at the door?" A boy's voice asks from inside the apartment, startling Peter out of the hug.
"Thanks, Marge. Come on, come meet Ned." He grabs my hand and drags me into his home.
"Marge!" Elizabeth comes bounding up to Peter and me, curly hair flying behind her head.
"Hi, Elizabeth."
"I told you to call me Liza." Pouting, she crosses her arms and I have to resist the urge to pat her head,
Smiling, I nod to Elizabeth to acknowledge the nickname before turning to the third person in the room.
"Hello, I am Marge."
"Hi, random lady who came into Peter's apartment, I'm Ned." He gives a little wave with furrowed brows and a strained smile.
Focusing my attention back on Elizabeth, Liza, I take off my hoodie to show the same vest contraption that was worn when we first met.
"Would you help me get this off?"
"Sure, but you're wearing that thing again? There's no reason for you to anymore." Showing Liza the order in which to undo the buckles that lay over my wings, I open the ones within my reach without a thought.
"Perhaps not, but it's more comfortable than the alternative options."
"Sorry, but what's happening? Why are you taking off your clothes?" Poor Ned's eyes are as open as they possibly can be and are flickering between Liza and me.
"You'll see." After saying that, the last buckle is undone and the vest is removed. Repeating the motions of spreading my wings and rustling the feathers, Ned reacted in a way that was not expected.
He fainted.
"Why does she have wings? How does she have wings? How do you have wings!? Are you a mutant?" The barrage of questions began as soon as the heavy-set teen awoke.
"Ned... Maybe calm down so Marge can actually answer some of your questions." Elizabeth tries to reign Ned in by placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Okay, okay... I'm calm, I'm chill. Answers."
Laughing, "My mother was a mutant, and that passed on to me."
Ned looks at me with a confused look, "But doesn't the mutant gene pass through your father?"
Liza tilts her head back and forth before answering for me, "Usually, but it's recessive. Plus, with Marge, her bio dad isn't even human, so who knows what's up with her DNA..." Peter's eyes light up at the idea.
"Can Mr. Stark have someone look at your DNA?"
"Probably, but if anybody does it, it will either be Tony or Dr. Banner." Shrugging, I ignore the faces of the younger teens.
"You call Mr. Stark by his first name?" Peter questions while Liza slaps a hand over Ned's mouth to delay any questions.
Deadpan, "I knew his father. I called him Howard." Elizabeth laughs at this while the boys look shell-shocked. "Anyway, should I text Tony about it?"
"Yes!!" Echoes from three different mouths in the room.
"Vous ressembliez tous à des triplés."
"Huh? What did you say? Was that French?" Ned asks.
"I said that you all sounded like triplets, and yes, it was French." The offense on their faces make them look even more like triplets.
"We do not!" Was said by the younger teens.
Elizabeth clears her throat, "Well, to another subject... Marge, is there any reason specifically you're visiting?"
Shaking my head, "No, I was out for a run with Pops when Peter texted and invited me over."
"'Pops'? Who's that?" Ned questions with a cocked head.
"Steve Rogers."
Ned's face is telling enough as to what he is thinking.
"Yes, Captain America. I am American Thunder." I summon a little lightning to zap between my fingers.
Peter and Liza laugh at their friend's expression.
Once Ned snaps out of it, the question barrage begins again.
"Can you summon storms? Can you control the air? Can you make people do things by controlling the air around them? Like the Force? Are you a real-life Jedi?"
Taken aback by the questions, I simply blink in response.
"Ned! Too many, too fast!" Peter scolds his male friend.
"What is this 'Jedi' you mentioned?" Peter and Ned gasp exaggeratedly and look at me like I killed one of their pets.
"She doesn't know Star Wars..." Peter mutters brokenly.
"Not knowing the TV shows, I would understand, but the history-altering films that were the original trilogy?! This is an outrage!" Ned rants.
Elizabeth sighs at her friends. "Here we go again..."
"What is 'Star Wars', and what does it have to do with this 'Jedi' thing you mentioned? Was there an intergalactic war that I missed?" Brows furrowed, I look between the two boys.
The trio laugh at my question before Peter explains that Star Wars is a popular movie franchise.
"Wait, you do know what a movie is, right?" Peter hesitantly asks, ears tinted red.
Laughing, "Yes, I know what a movie is. I even got to see the first full-length animated film in theaters."
Liza was taken aback at this, while the boys had confused looks.
"You saw Snow White when it was in theaters?!"
"Wait, what?"
"Yes, it was a Christmas present for the orphanage from an anonymous donor. I believe their words were that 'we could use some Christmas cheer'. They rented out most of the theater for that showing, allowing all of us to be there."
The atmosphere of the three changed when I mentioned the orphanage.
"Right... You were in an orphanage before Captain America adopted you." Peter draws out his words as if he doesn't know what to say. Understandable. If I had not lived it, what would I say?
Then there was Ned... "What was it like? Did you get a lot of presents? What did you eat?"
Taking in a shaky breath, I close my eyes, only to open them again upon hearing Ned exclaim, "Ow!"
He rubs the back of his head while giving his friends side-eyes, which they return with a glare.
"Do you all wish to know, or may I refrain?" Not meeting any of their eyes, my head lowers. Wishing for a distraction from the memories, I bring a wing around and start preening it without looking.
"No, you don't have to tell us. Only if you're ready and willing." Elizabeth assures.
"Yeah, don't force yourself to satisfy Ned's curiosity. We can go to another subject if you want." Peter offers.
"What is Star Wars about?" My question causes plenty of distraction, as Peter and Ned split off to decide the best way to explain the movies.
"Do you want me to work on the back?" Liza quietly makes the offer, and at my acceptance, she starts preening the back of my wings.
The boys wander back over after a wing is completely preened. They immediately jump into an intense explanation of the universe of Star Wars. One thing they mention jumps out at me.
"Clones?" My voice breaks on the word.
"Yeah? It's not such a strange thing to have pop up in fiction." Ned answers with a confused look on his face.
"Did they ever learn that they were clones?"
Ned and Peter look at each other before Peter answers, "I'm not sure... they kinda disappeared from the timeline. Why are you asking?"
Explaining what happened to the Howling Commandos was tougher than I thought it would be.
"What I'm getting, is that crazy Nazis made clones of the Commandos. What is life?!" Peter tangles his hands in his hair as he whisper‐shouts the last sentence.
Ned simply stares at me in shock while Liza wipes tears away from her eyes.
"What's going to happen to them now?" She asks, looking down towards the floor.
"We're going to take them to Asgard to be mentally healed, then hopefully introduce them to their respective families. If that doesn't work out, perhaps we'll have the Howling Commandos 2.0."
"They're going to Asgard?!" Ned exclaims in jealousy.
Laughing, "Perhaps one day I will take you all there."
The looks on their faces were more than worth it.
"Marge?"
"Yes, Elizabeth?
She looks over to the two sleeping boys to her right.
"Do you think we can tell Ned about me? My family has agreed to it, so it's up to me."
"As I told Peter earlier, it all depended on his reaction to me. He was positive. No hint of mutant hate anywhere. I'd say to let him fully grasp everything before doing so."
"Okay. I'll do that." Distractedly nodding, Liza zones out in thought.
"Would you like me to be here when he is told?" Snapping out of the zone, Elizabeth stares at me before looking away in contemplation.
"No, I think he'd take it better if it was just Peter and I telling him."
Nodding, I smile at her wisdom. "Alright. Let me know if you change your mind on that. You can text me anytime, but be aware that it may be weeks before I answer or even see the message. I should be heading out soon, but the boys are asleep... I don't want to leave without a goodbye."
She nods in understanding before a playful smile stretches over her face.
Here we go...
Liza stands from her seat and sneaks her way over to the boys on the couch. Bending her knees, she jumps on top of Peter and Ned, startling them awake.
"Gah! Liza?!" Peter yells as he is woken up.
"Holy son of a biscuit eater!" The three of us stop in our tracks and look at Ned, whose ears are turning red, and we break out into laughter. He joins in with a blush still rather prominent on his cheeks.
Once the laughter has eased up, Peter asks Elizabeth why she woke them up.
Answering in her stead, "She did it so I could get a goodbye before leaving."
"Ahhhh." The boys say in unison before glancing at each other and grinning.
My turn? Sighing in resignation, I spread my arms to them, wings copying as well.
The boys dive into my arms in a group hug. Liza joins them before I wrap my wings around the three younger teens.
Ned pulls away first, while Elizabeth and Peter cling onto my shirt.
"I know I just met you, but it feels like I've known you forever." Ned says with a shy smile.
Smiling back, I look down at the two brown-haired heads in my arms. "I don't think you're the only one."
Peter and Liza then pull away with Elizabeth rubbing at her eyes again.
"We're gonna miss you. Make sure to visit whenever you're in town." Peter instructs with a stern voice.
Saluting in military style I say, "Sir, yes, sir!"
The three laugh at my antics while I grab my vest and start putting it on with a smile.
Seeing this, Peter grabs my hoodie for when I'll need it next.
With all the buckles done, I take the hoodie from Peter and pull it on.
All set, I give the three more hugs before turning to the door.
"Marge?"
Looking back at Ned, I tilt my head in question.
"I'm sorry if my questions earlier brought up some bad memories. Please don't let that stop you from visiting."
"It's alright. I'm used to being mentally thrown back in time from things around me. You'd better believe that I will visit, whether you like it or not!"
With sad smiles on the teens' faces, I wave before exiting the apartment and begin my trek back to the tower.