Traveler: Chapter 30

The ethereal void dissolved, leaving Harry blinking against the sterile fluorescent light of the containment chamber. The hum of machinery, once a steady hum, was now pulsing with erratic energy. The alarm blared loudly, and he found everyone looking concerned as Helen and Betty frantically worked on their respective stations.

“Banner!” he barked, his eyes darting towards the massive containment pod in the center where Bruce's form was swelling, his clothes straining against a surge of green muscle. The gamma radiation seemed to have taken on a life of its own, coursing through him like a malevolent tide. His face was contorted in a mixture of pain and rage, but unlike past transformations, Harry saw a glimmer of intelligence flicker in his eyes. His eyes widened slightly at the sight, and he knew the vestiges of Bruce were trying to stubbornly remain present.

“This wasn’t in our calculations!” Helen's voice echoed in the chamber, her face pale. "His gamma levels are skyrocketing!"

Her hands flew across the control panel, trying to regain control, but it was evident that this escalation had caught them by surprise.

"Stabilization protocols are failing," Betty said urgently, her face a mask of concern. "I’m attempting manual overrides.”

“Things are working as they should on my end,” Harry said firmly as he reached out with his magic. "There is nothing to fear yet. This is not a matter of exterior interference—his inner balance is unstable."

He directed a pulse of golden energy to Banner’s pod as it had before, strengthening its restraints, but the gamma radiation lashed back against it like a raging animal, refusing to yield. It became increasingly clear to him that his wards alone would not stop whatever was happening to Bruce right now.

“I’m losing containment!” Helen exclaimed. "Gamma radiation's spiking; he's destabilizing all over again."

A wide-eyed Maria darted forward, joining Harry, her voice sharp with command, "We need to try something different—NOW. Can you shut down the redistribution, or would it fuck things up even worse, Helen?”

"Shutting it down entirely will throw the entire process out of sync and we may never have the same energy balance, plus it will hurt them even worse.”

“So, we let the guy blow up everything?” Felicia questioned.

“Let’s see how the situation plays out before you suggest catastrophic ends, shall we?” Harry muttered, his attention solely on Banner who continued to transform and struggle in equal measure, looking from his hybrid, almost hulking self to a version that was merely on steroids. “We need to push a balance towards whatever he’s becoming; suppress the pure gamma so the human part may get more leeway,” Harry realized.

“That makes perfect sense in theory, darling, but it’s not going to be easy,” Felicia remarked as she leaned with her arms behind her, watching closely.

“Well, we won’t know if we don’t try,” Natasha urged from her spot by the wall. Meanwhile, Thor had eyes only for his sister who looked as unresponsive as before.

“Let's do this,” Harry replied, his tone grim as his arms went to his sides, the tattoo on his person gleaming as he tapped into his magical reserves, redirecting the currents and drawing the influence of the Death Stone toward the Gamma array in Bruce’s pod. The gold currents joined with a pitch-black tendril to become a beam, which Harry projected through his arms, making his magic join the volatile currents of the room. His intent was clear—stabilize Bruce by force if he needed to. His magic started by containing the volatile radiation while working its way to try and get it to bond to the man’s system.

The chamber was filled with a kaleidoscope of colors as gamma green clashed with golden hues, psionic crimson, deathly black, and cosmic blue. The containment pod shook violently as Bruce struggled, his mouth open in a silent roar that tore through all sound of alarm, his eyes switching back and forth from that pure rage and reason once more. His skin kept bulging, transitioning from green to normal pale and back again.

“Dr. Banner!” Maria shouted through the comm, trying to reach him. "Dr. Banner, can you hear me?"

Banner’s struggles lessened, but a wave of power rolled through the room that caught the four at the sidelines off guard as all the color, even of the machinery, turned from green to the color gold and stayed that way for a moment, leaving everything awash with a pure yellow tint surrounded by black mist before it quickly reverted to the way everything was before that golden rush of energy.

“Dr. Banner, what did you do!?” Maria yelled, stepping closer as Bruce continued to thrash weakly, panting, and unable to comprehend the latest change to his body, no longer expanding, not fully hulked, yet stronger than ever before. The brunette halted in her tracks as she witnessed his half-transformation with wide eyes.

“It's stabilizing!" Helen cried, her fingers flying across the console, checking all her settings and finding that the process had gone in the intended manner. "The hybrid matrix is taking hold! He's regulating his gamma output!”

Gradually, the gamma radiation faded, the bulging muscles receding and as the smoke that had filled the pod vanished, Bruce Banner appeared different than he ever was, as he settled against the wall of the containment unit, no longer in a massive hulking form but still not his regular body either. The green hue seemed to have combined with his normal skin tone, lightening slightly, and he was easily over twelve feet tall.

His eyes opened blearily and he looked around in a disoriented fashion for a moment, as if trying to make sense of where he was. However, what no one missed was the sheer lack of madness and rage in those eyes. Those were entirely human.

In no time, his vision cleared and his eyes fell on everyone gathered in the room, and with a sigh, he closed his eyes to control whatever was bubbling inside him.

“W-What did he do?” Betty asked in a whisper, her eyes wide.

“He’s become a hybrid,” Harry said softly, waving his hand to conjure a large robe over his body. “Hulk’s body fused with his, and if I’m right, he’s retained his sanity.”

“It wasn’t supposed to happen like this though,” she said softly, her eyes sad as she gazed at Banner. No one said anything.

Betty finally exhaled a heavy breath that she didn’t even know she’d been holding. She squared her shoulders and straightened, a determined expression crossing her face and she immediately checked on Bruce’s condition. He was still trying to regain his full bearings, and as she checked, the monitors reflected an entirely different state for his vitals that made her gasp out loud.

“Helen,” she whispered. “Do you see this?”

“Yeah,” Helen replied, her eyes wide as she analyzed the results. “Dr. Banner’s body seems to have adapted to absolute perfection!” she stated incredulously as the vitals settled into superhuman values with no adverse effects whatsoever. His metabolism had multiplied thousands of times, and power was coursing through his veins, yet there was nothing to worry about.

“Harry, what exactly happened?” Maria asked softly.

"I just guided the process," he explained calmly, eyeing Banner who still looked disoriented in his pod. “For a brief moment there, I felt the whole space in which all the gamma rays seemed to occupy all at once, so I managed to suppress most of the volatile properties and forced a harmonious merge that could withstand the natural conditions in place. As for what happened to Banner himself… you will need to hear that directly from him. I can say that I had a feeling that such a state could occur,” he stated before moving towards Banner.

There was a tense moment as everyone waited. Eventually, Bruce’s eyes fluttered open like normal, his disorientation vanishing entirely. He looked down at his arms and flexed, and even in a slightly confused manner, smiled wryly.

“Well,” Bruce began, his voice hoarse, but remarkably calm. "That was something." He touched his temples gingerly, trying to come to terms with what had happened. "I... I feel different. Not... the usual after-Hulk difference. It's like… the best of both worlds are inside me. Hulk's got my control—my calm—and I… I’m as powerful, only with control to go with it. Did… did it work?”

He turned his gaze to his best friend and gave a genuine, relieved smile at her which she returned gratefully as she kept running diagnostics.

Betty nodded, smiling slightly. "It didn’t work as we expected it to, but it did work, Bruce. You stabilized the gamma, both in its normal condition and its enhanced state.”

Bruce's gaze was drawn to the monitors before him, showcasing all the different vitals that could be read. He understood almost at once that a complete transformation of sorts had occurred—the gamma signature on his person had completely changed—stabilized and bonded—the way all gamma radiation would in most regular and powerful conditions across the known universe, for someone so infused with it like himself. It explained how Thor, for instance, who had always carried power similar to a planet could use it all while looking relatively human, albeit an extremely muscular one. Alas, he did not have the composition of an Asgardian. He was only a human, so he could not expect such massive boons.

"How… How did this happen though?" Betty asked, looking at Bruce.

"Well, the initial process forced the connection, creating that new reality you were just chatting about,” Bruce said. “That reality linked me up with everything that I carry inside of me—my Hulk alter, the man who I truly am, as well as the new hybrid form we didn't even anticipate to witness," he summarized. “Essentially, that brief surge gave both sides of my consciousness access to a new middle ground. In essence, I found the means to integrate my own alter. Or something along those lines.”

“Like, I’m no doctor, so how do you expect me to understand that?” Felicia asked dryly, pushing off the wall and joining Maria and Harry.

"Basically," Bruce took a deep breath as it seemed the best way for him to process this revelation. "I integrated the Hulk, but kept the science, so we ended up on the middle ground.”

"Which basically means you fused the two together and kept the best of both worlds, the brain and the brawn,” Natasha replied.

“I wouldn’t say it’s the best of both worlds. I would’ve preferred to look like a regular human, after all. But yeah, it’s the best compromise I could reach with the Hulk.”

“I’m sure you’d prefer this to what was going on before,” Harry said dryly.

Bruce considered this carefully and for a long moment, he remained silent before he nodded.

"Can you walk?" Betty asked, approaching his containment pod.

"I believe so," Bruce answered. Helen nodded before she activated the pod door and after a few hesitant moments, Bruce slowly walked out, wobbly at first but more sure with each step. It had happened—he was finally himself. He had full access to the Hulk and still remained in control.

His transformation hadn't simply created a monster; it had given rise to something completely different—a bridge between human intellect and pure, untamed power.

“Well, at least one mess is now dealt with,” Harry stated, running magical scans on Banner to make sure nothing was out of the ordinary. He found nothing. “What about Sylvia and Wanda?”

Almost as if on cue, a gentle hum came from Sylvia's containment pod, and everyone’s eyes darted to her. Thor jerked and straightened, taking a step forward, only for Harry to raise an arm and block his path.

“Patience,” he said curtly. Thor’s jaw tightened but he nodded in understanding as he stepped back. Harry eyed Thor before he discreetly cast a targeted concealment charm on the Asgardian to ensure everyone but Sylvia could see him. He did not want to send her into a fit of rage when she emerged from the pod in a vulnerable state.

In the pod, Sylvia stirred and slowly opened her eyes, her gaze scanning the room with a mixture of confusion and caution before they filled with relief when she saw Harry.

“What… what happened?” She asked softly as the pod door opened and she looked around. Slowly, she came to her senses and realized that they weren't in the strange void she’d seen only moments earlier. She descended from her pod and walked over to stand beside Bruce, looking at him with wide eyes.

Bruce’s gaze never left her once she did, his face mirroring the concern on her face as well.

“How do you feel, Sylvia?” Maria asked, her hostility toward the woman a thing of the distant past.

Sylvia simply gave her a nod.

Harry scanned her magically as well, and her energy felt stable now, neither fluctuating nor leeching off something like Wanda, but perfectly aligned. There wasn't even a tinge of that violet or darkness that she had carried before.

For her part, Sylvia felt lighter, calmer, and more focused on things than she’d felt in a long time. It seemed as if a weight was no longer pressing her down and she felt like her head could finally feel and understand true peace. Her heart also had that feeling of home now that those old hurts she carried within, the hate that fueled it were now… diminished and manageable.

“You feel… different,” she said as her gaze locked on Harry.

“So do you,” Harry replied with a small smile.

Sylvia took a moment to understand everything that she now saw as a whole, starting from Bruce's condition to Wanda who was coming to from her pod as well.

“Wanda,” she said, her eyes softening considerably as she turned towards the girl with kind eyes, and everyone was surprised to see something so unexpected coming from this powerful Asgardian. "Are you okay?”

Wanda stretched slightly, blinking a couple of times as her psionic energy glowed with a muted yet calm crimson color. She nodded with a grateful smile on her face.

"Yes. The pull, the draining... it's gone. I feel… whole,” she said, turning to Harry who smiled at her and nodded.

Harry walked over and stood close to her, reaching out to take her hand, and Wanda looked at him in surprise. He found that the connection that she had been feeling whenever she was with him had lessened considerably. Something was still there, but it was now a faint whisper rather than a constant drain, now that it wasn't essential.

However, Harry felt this would require some study as well since, up to that point, his magical signature had done nothing of that effect on other witches. It was probably something specific about her particular powers that did not require her magical output, per se, but his. However, it would be a study that he and Helen could investigate at length some other day, away from here.

“All their conditions are stable. I believe this experiment has gone… relatively successfully. Banner has changed his form from Gamma infused to hybrid. Sylvia seems to have no residual effect from cosmic energy or any of those things the Mind Stone inflicted upon her. Wanda seems at peace. All seem better than when we came here,” Harry remarked.

“Our calculations say the same,” Helen nodded, giving Bruce a small smile. “Apart from this slight… miscalculation, everything’s worked out perfectly.”

“Don’t worry about it, Dr. Cho,” Bruce replied. “I had a feeling it’d end like this.”

Helen smiled thinly as she gave him a nod.

“Well then,” Harry remarked, gazing at Sylvia who had been looking at him this entire time. “I believe there’s only one thing left.”

With that said, Harry let the concealment charm fall, and Thor became visible to Sylvia, looking undeniably uncomfortable.

Sylvia’s gaze went cold the moment her eyes landed on him. Her body tensed, and a quiet snarl began to rumble in her throat.

Uh-oh,” Felicia muttered under her breath.

"What are you doing here?" Sylvia’s voice dripped with venom as she looked straight at him and only him. It felt as if everyone else had vanished in her eyes.

Thor took a hesitant step forward, his blue eyes wide with an uncomfortable amount of remorse and pain as they focused on Sylvia. "Sister," he began softly, his voice strained with an undercurrent of guilt.

"Don't call me that!" She spat, her words sharp as shards of glass. "You, all of you… Asgardians..." Her fists clenched as the color rushed to her face in visible anger. "You don’t get to address me with such familiarity after everything that’s happened. You don’t deserve anything from me! After years of suffering, you dare to… you dare…”

She visibly shuddered at the memories that coursed through her mind, and her face reflected the pain hidden inside. She backed up, pushing away all thoughts that might link to every awful thing that those Asgardians had done to her. She did not want their presence or their remorse; it would not erase what they’d allowed to occur.

Thor’s face crumpled at her harsh words. He looked as if he wanted nothing more than to reach out to her, to reassure her that his neglect wasn’t done out of malice but a great stupidity and complete oversight that stemmed from his own naive, childlike heart, not cruelty or betrayal but simple, careless idiocy that still caused as much harm either way. Still, she looked as though she wanted nothing to do with his remorse, much less a comforting touch.

“Sylvia,” he continued, but even with the attempt to seem calm and authoritative, his voice trembled with a plea. “I understand your anger and believe that every single hateful thing that has and will pour out of your lips is deserved but you have to let me show you─"

"I do NOT need you! I do NOT need your guilt!" She retorted, her voice cutting across his. She didn’t give him a chance to retort as she continued scathingly, her voice colder than Jotunheim, "I would rather speak to a rock or the empty void, for they would show more emotion, care or sympathy to me than you and yours! Do you understand me? For I did my time down there. I fought for it and I suffered alone. And it was all because of your noble ‘kind’. You and yours have always betrayed me. So please… you, along with that lot, can go crawl under that rock that made you come crawling back from some intergalactic toilet you people were residing in.”

The atmosphere in the room grew even more tense, although a certain blonde cat was having a hard time keeping her laughter in. Harry gave her a cursory glance and he sighed.

He had suspected this reaction and he’d wanted to prevent it, but Thor would not listen and he did not want to keep being bothered by the Asgardian. He firmly believed that Thor needed to hear it all from Sylvia herself, and only then would he decide to stay away.

Thor’s posture seemed to wilt under his sister’s scathing words. “I have nothing to say for how badly I wronged you. How badly everyone in Asgard has wronged you.” His words barely came out of his lips, sounding almost defeated and filled with regret. “All you were going through and I...” He bowed his head in guilt and remorse. “You never deserved what you were forced to go through.”

He wanted nothing more than for her to use her most deadly attacks on him to wash away the guilt that was bubbling inside him and perhaps his own selfish wish for redemption as well. For her to be forced to make a deal with the devil because she saw no choice in front of her… she was not innocent, but she was not entirely at fault either. Thor did not dare say it out loud though. It was not the time.

“He's going to keep going,” Felicia muttered from her spot near the other ladies, her arms crossed over her chest as she tilted her head sideways, more than a little amused at the sight before her. “Maybe we could grab some popcorn while we’re here. Any way to make some here?” she asked as she looked at Maria with an eyebrow arched, only to get a look that read clearly ‘Really, Felicia? Right now?’ from the brunette who shook her head and turned back to the confrontation.

Harry stared at an irate Sylvia for a long moment before his eyes fell on Wanda who pursed her lips. Glancing at Thor, he said, “Sylvia has said what she needed to say."

Thor did not look pleased, but before he could speak up, Harry turned to Sylvia and continued, "As for your pain, that too is justified, Sylvia, but I feel you should at least give him a chance. Let me finish before you interrupt me, please. It won't resolve what has happened and it for sure would do nothing to satisfy all the anger that’s built within you, but talking about it and directly addressing everything you have in your heart… it’s going to help you a lot. You may hate it, but believe me, he needs to hear it from you. For both your sakes.”

Sylvia averted her gaze and gave a small huff of discontent at his comment, earning a small smile from him before he returned his gaze to the Asgardian prince before him. “Speak from your heart,” His tone was much softer than the usual one he used whenever he’d talked to Thor before, and it seemed to have taken the other man by surprise as well. “That’s the only way you can have any hope of reconciling with her.”

“I would like nothing more than to make her understand how remorseful I am for everything,” Thor replied as he gazed at his sister.

Sylvia seemed even more furious as she glared at Thor. “That sounds like utter nonsense to me.”

Harry sighed, understanding that this was not going to go the easy way. He stepped closer to Sylvia and took her hands in his, squeezing comfortingly. The woman looked up at him with pursed lips.

“You need to deal with all this,” he whispered gently. “Everyone can see how much you’ve been hurting, and no one else here knows it more than me. You can’t run, Sylvia. None of you can.”

Sylvia looked as though she wanted to argue and deny this truth. He hadn’t gone through what she had, and for that, even though she loved him dearly, she believed he should shut his mouth. Still, a part of her, a tiny whisper that seemed to come from the deepest pits of her heart argued that perhaps he had a point. That he knows pain… pain inflicted by family.

It was a terrible compromise and a part of her cursed herself for her inability to deny him, and with a huff, she agreed.

“Fine,” she said aggressively, looking at Thor as she dared him. "Spill it. And make it quick.” Her expression was harsh but almost everyone could see the vulnerability and wariness disguised as aggression as her body twitched ever so slightly.

Thor took a deep, shaky breath before adhering to Harry’s advice and speaking directly from his heart. "I... I can't ask you to forgive me. But what you felt… whatever horrible, agonizing pain and torment you went through, the torment caused by others... caused by your family, and especially because of my own neglect. Please let me give my word as your brother, that even with our past history, I will help you and be a true family for as long as I breathe and so forth.” Thor's blue eyes, usually bright with an easy smile, were clouded with despair. He bowed his head in a silent plea, “Please… I beg you, give me the chance to make amends.”

For a moment, Sylvia stood there in silence, contemplating his words. They still stung and still served as a reminder of all she had gone through. Yet something was different, almost a small part of that person she once was now peeked through those cracks and looked towards this lost man before her. She didn’t feel that old hurt as acutely. She felt no need to unleash the anger nor to let go of the new part of her that she had fought tooth and nail to obtain. This new equilibrium seemed more tempting than simply allowing the bitterness of the past to eat away at her. However, this was far from forgiveness. Forgiveness was something he and the entirety of Asgard needed to earn from her and no empty platitudes would do it.

She glanced at Harry who gave her a supportive smile and let out a slow, almost defeated sigh. Turning back to Thor, she said curtly, “I don't forgive you… nor your whole pompous kind, not now, nor will I do so later.”

The words still carried an edge, but they lacked the hatred and disgust from a few minutes ago. "And I definitely won't ask you to help, nor your kind as well.” Her eyes bored into his, filled with a strange mixture of anger, wariness, and hurt. “But I… I need space. Lots of it. So just... just leave me be for now. Here. With someone who I want to be with.”

The meaning was lost on no one. Felicia gave Sylvia a smug smile while the other women exchanged meaningful glances as Sylvia gazed at Harry with a determined expression on her face. He stared at her for a moment before his lips quirked slightly, much to her delight as she smirked in return.

Meanwhile, Thor’s shoulders slumped but he didn’t give any sign he would stop now that he had seen a little sliver of hope. His sister had at least listened, after all.

“I know I’ve given all of you all this trouble, and I’m sorry for that,” Sylvia said as she stepped toward Wanda. “Come along. Let’s go… breathe.” Her hand reached out for Wanda who glanced at Harry and then Thor before moving beside Sylvia. The two women clasped hands and moved together, and Sylvia paused near Felicia. They gazed at each other for a few seconds before a small smirk emerged on Felicia’s face. She took Sylvia’s other hand, and together, the three walked out of the chamber.

“Told you so,” Harry sighed after a few moments, breaking the deafening silence that Sylvia’s exit had caused as his gaze settled on Thor.

Thor paid him no heed and stared blankly at the space that his sister had just vacated, his mind a jumbled mess of thoughts.

“You better give it a lot of time,” Maria said, trying to muster something other than mere pity for the desperate Asgardian. “She’s suffered for far too long at the hands of your people, and your father especially. She’s been betrayed, and she’s been hurt by family.”

“Forgiveness for something like that requires you to work for it, and not expect anything handed on a silver plate, like usual,” Harry added curtly, making Maria sigh.

She turned back to Thor and said softly, “I hope she’ll come around. In the meantime, I’m sure there’s someone who would he happy to see you.”

Thor glanced at her as she gave him a small smile before she turned around and walked toward Harry who had moved over to where Bruce stood with Betty and Helen. It was finally time for them to call it a night after that odd, chaotic experience had come to an end with satisfactory results all things considered.

"Well," he began with a small smile as he clapped his hands. "Seems that we’re done here. Let’s head back.”

Thor abruptly walked away without another word, completely ignoring everyone. Harry glanced over and sighed at his rather obvious display and shook his head. He could only say so much to Thor who he truly did not feel too much empathy for. It was only for Sylvia’s sake that he had tried to get the two to talk. Thor understood far too less, but his remorse felt genuine. Still, it was going to take the guy time and effort to regain Sylvia’s trust. Maybe there was hope.

Meanwhile, in the lab area, things had finally calmed as Helen and Betty were assisted by Bruce who, although much bigger, could still work just fine on the computers. He just couldn’t type very well, but he could most definitely swipe and click on the transparent screens as they kept popping up during their respective tasks of cleaning and packing things up.

While they were at it, Harry walked over to Maria whom he saw relaying the results to Nick Fury, and with a smirk, he wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. The brunette simply rolled her eyes as her former boss’ lips pursed at the sight of him.

“Yeah, it’s all done successfully. The Hulk is under control, and he’s merged with Banner. A better solution than what it was before, I’m sure,” he said dryly as Fury kept staring at him. “Now, we’re all a bit tired, so see you later, Nick.”

With that, Harry cut the call and turned an exasperated Maria Hill around in his arms.

“What?” He asked with a grin.

“You’ll never stop fucking with him, will you?” She asked with an amused quirk on her lips.

“Why do you ask questions you know the answers to?” He asked again as he leaned closer, trapping her between himself and a counter.

Maria merely smiled at him as he stepped closer, pressing his body against her, and she stood on her tiptoes, pressing her lips against his.

Betty and Helen looked over before they glanced at each other and shook their heads. Meanwhile, Bruce who had his back to them kept working, none the wiser.

The pair kissed each other, softly at first but it soon grew into more passionate snogging once their hands began roaming. Harry’s hands caressed her sides as they descended, reaching behind her to cup her buttocks over her dress while Maria stroked his chest. She had to stifle her moan when he kneaded her rear, squeezing her ass cheeks without a care in the world as they kissed heatedly.

“Alright, that’s enough for now,” Natasha muttered as she grabbed Harry and pulled him back from Maria, both of them looking like they wanted nothing more than to take this further. However, Maria, at least, had some sense as she looked around, her eyes meeting all three women in the chamber, and shook her head with a smile.

Meanwhile, Harry grinned sheepishly as Natasha stared at him with an unimpressed look on her face.

“I know it’s been a while, but surely you can control yourself a bit better than this,” she said dryly.

"Technically, it was I who kissed him," Maria muttered.

Harry’s response was to grab Natasha and kiss her firmly, taking her by surprise. However, she quickly melted into the kiss once he pushed his tongue into her mouth, snogging her with everything he had.

Maria looked at them and shook her head with a smile. She looked at the workstation and saw Betty and Helen were both almost done. Once the power was cut off, Helen turned to her and nodded, her eyes gaining an amused glint when she saw Harry and Natasha making out eagerly.

The pair slowly pulled back and gazed at each other heatedly, and Harry could not help himself.

“Well, looks like you can’t control yourself either,” he teased. Natasha’s response was to swat him on the chest, making him grin and catch her hand in his.

“Alright then,” he said as he took Maria’s hand as well and walked over to the center of the room, “let’s get going, shall we?”

“What about those three? And Thor?” Bruce asked.

“Felicia will bring them back with her, I’m sure,” Harry replied. “And Thor? He’s gone already to wherever Maria asked him to.”

Bruce nodded as they joined them in the center of the room, and they all took each other’s hands. Once they were ready, they gave Harry a nod.

Within moments, a golden swirl emerged and enveloped the group, and barely a second later, the chamber stood empty once more.

To be continued…