Shine Again (An Avengers: Infinity War/Endgame Story)

Chapter 49: Evil Brewing

    Anja braced herself against the railing of her bedroom's balcony, singing along quietly to music playing on her phone as a way to distract her from the situation at hand. Her mind was racing, running over all the possible outcomes of their impending showdown with Thanos. Knowing that there was a nonzero chance that she or someone she loved was going to be killed made her stomach churn. Not that it wasn't doing that enough already. She figured she must've eaten something that was disagreeing with her or that her nerves were just so shot that they decided to make her feel nauseous. Either was entirely possible at this point. Regardless, she felt disgusting.

    She had already changed into her new Asgardian armor, and it was taking some getting used to. Anja had never owned a set of armor before- other than her S.H.I.E.L.D. garb- and it was certainly refreshing to know her body would finally have some proper protection. Her new get-up reminded her of the footage she had seen of Lady Sif when she assisted S.H.I.E.L.D. some years ago. Only her armor was a dark emerald green where Sif's was red, and what was silver metal on Sif's armor was black and gold on Anja's. She could tell Loki had heavily influenced the design, once again mirroring his own armor. Anja just hoped that this armor was as functional as it was pretty.

    She was still sore and bruised in places from the last encounter with Thanos and his minions, not to mention what remained of the scorch mark on her forehead from the Power Stone. It was nearly healed completely, and she was praying that it didn't leave a scar. Despite that, she was as ready as she could be for a rematch against Thanos and his army. Loki had told her many times before that there was no truly preparing for a foe of that magnitude, and her first encounter was more than enough to believe that. Fighting Thanos was nothing like fighting Ultron or any of her Avengers' teammates.

    Yet, there she was, singing along to whatever song popped up on her phone as she waited for someone to fetch her when they were ready to depart for Wakanda. The last bit of normality before unfathomable war broke out. Anja had seen the destruction and devastation war could bring between her involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D., as well as the aftermath of Ultron and the Avengers' Civil War. It was never pretty, and she was sure whatever was awaiting them at the end of this was going to be unlike anything she had ever seen. She took in the vast landscape in front of her, lit up by the early morning sun, trying her best to not wonder if this was the last time she would see it as she sang along.

    "In the dark of the night, terror will strike her
    In the dark of the night, evil will brew.
    Soon she will feel
    That her nightmares are real
    In the dark of the night-"

    "Kind of a morbid song for you to be singing right about now, don't you think?" Layla's voice interrupted her.

    Anja spun around to face her friend, startled. She quickly picked her phone off the railing and turned the music off. "It was on shuffle," she answered hastily, pushing one of the many braids in her hair behind her ear. "And you know I can't resist a good villain song."

    "Uh huh," Layla replied. "Anyway, are you ready to get out of here? They're all waiting for you at the Bifrost."

    Anja sighed. "As ready as I can be, I think."

    Layla nodded, a solemn smile on her face. "I know you're nervous about it just being you and Loki going, but you guys are going to do great. Just know Thor and I will be arriving shortly behind you with reinforcements. And then we'll kill that son of a bitch once and for all."

    Anja smiled, but it was forced. She couldn't tell if Layla was actually confident that they were going to be victorious or not. Just that morning she had made it seem as if she was sure they were all going to die. She supposed both things could be true, giving them a Pyrrhic victory of sorts. Anja didn't dare think of what that victory would taste like. She had suffered loss in battle before; she didn't want to experience it again but knew it was likely inevitable.