Ororo smiled knowingly at Jack. While most on Earth-616 - and really, most worlds - would remark that she was a member of the X-Men, she was also descended from a line of witches. She dabbled in worlds both mutant and magic. She was as comfortable here, in this form as a sorceress, as she would be riding the winds and summoning lightning from the heavens in combat with the X-Men. "I never said you must be an Avenger or an X-Men, Jack," Ororo chided, like gently admonishing a child.
"The universe isn't calling you," Ororo then said. This was false, of course, but she was poetic and dramatic. "
I, Ororo, She Who Rides with the Acanti, charge you to protect Life wherever it dwells. I charge you to bear the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme and protect your dimension from whomever would threaten it."
A light glowed in her hand, and Ororo conjured up a small object. It was an act of creation magic, the purest one - the only one that Belasco could never perform. She produced an acorn. She extended her hand to Jack. "Take this. It is your sacred pact."
* * *
When you touched her arm, Madalyne, it felt like the demon child was burning up. Some demons in Limbo ran naturally hot. Perhaps this was just that. But then again, as a physician, this would also be expected for the bite of a venomous snake. You chanted your healing spell, hoping to heal the child's bite and withdraw the venom. What happened next reminded me very much of one of my more chaotic pupils.
The venom flowed out of the throbbing wound, drifting into the space between you and Ananym - and then suddenly, it flew into your mouth, forcing its way down your throat and into your body. It burned like whiskey. Your vision would blur and the world would seem to sway before you.
"Mads? What's wrong? What's happening?" Ananym asked, tilting her head to the side. "Are you dying?"
Those would be the last words you would hear for some time.
* * *
Max, you open up a portal behind the Green Eyed One - or rather, underneath them. They fall through and the portal closes, severing their arm. You are sent falling to the ground, Klara, but the skeletal grip remains strong. From around the room, the furniture and the decor begin to stir. They fly towards you, Klara, barely missing. The bits and pieces of long dead souls disassemble, before forming a new body - a new skeletal corpse of a giant, a new Green Eyed One.
"It's rude to cut someone's limbs off as well, dearie," the Green Eyed One said. The creature barely blinked an eye before Carolina chopped their leg off. And just as before, the bonework from the room sprung into action. Not only did the Green Eyed One grow a new leg, but the missing leg grew another Green Eyed One.
The Green Eyed Ones smiled, baring their razor sharp teeth. "I've always wondered what mutant tastes like," they said in unison. The Green Eyed Ones are a hive. The Green Eyed One not holding you, Klara, grabs Carolina and dangles her upside down, inspecting her. They opened their mouth wide, about to eat Carolina whole, when they suddenly paused, looking shocked.
They dropped Carolina gingerly, as if she were royalty. "Forgive me, I didn't know your soul was claimed by Witchfire," they breathed. "You are free to go. Tell her I didn't harm you."
They said nothing about your friends however. Whatever mysterious protection extended to you, it did not go to Klara and Max. From somewhere behind you, Max, strange organs like string came and wrapped all around you, constricting and squeezing. These would be the intestines.
Runa the Grey
Location: Limbo
Skills: Intuition
Spells: Elder Futhark Runes
The demons were terrified of the assembled might - of the Sorcerers Supreme. Runa could feel the emotions rolling off of them in waves. But in their bones, they felt that there was something else - something that these demons were even more petrified of.
"Save your threats, child," Runa cautioned.
"There is someone else they fear more than you." It was not any person present of their company. No, Runa was certain - certain that it must have been this Witchfire. Such was the way with demons. Loyalty was won by power and power won by fear.
To inspire a demonic hoard to clash with them, this Witchfire must be mighty powerful indeed.
It was a pity that Runa had never heard of them before. Had they eyes still, they might have glanced at Edus pointedly. He had never spoken to them about these events, and yet, they had been friends. Battle companions, at the very least. Perhaps he was doing his best to preserve the timeline. But at any right, mild irritation filled them. They hated not knowing something.
They were so used to having all the answers, leaving others in the dark.
The demons continued to fall upon them, wave after wave. One of them spewed strange black tar from their mouth, which would have doused Edus and turned him into a living man of wax, had it not been for his timely shield. But as soon as he would throw a shield up, it would fall against an attack. One demon attempted to suicide-bomb Prudence, exploding above her, but strangely she was unscathed. Her skin shimmered like the scales of a snake for a moment, and an aching pain exploded in her mouth.
Four demons grabbed Runa, forcing the elderly woman down to the ground. She could not see them. She could not see her bag of runes in her pocket. But they could feel its weight. They struggled, barely managing to grasp a rune in time, throwing it up to activate it - sōwilō - and the light of a small sun suddenly intensified around them. The demons atop of them burned to ash.
Annika was the one with poor luck. Instinctively, Runa turned her head in Annika's direction. It was like the old woman knew what was about to happen - as if somehow, they knew that a demon had managed to sneak up on Annika, a demon with knives for hands, and it sheathed its blades into Annika's side. The demon rotated its wrist and then pulled out, grinning madly.
To an ordinary person, it would have been a fatal blow.
Was Annika ordinary?
