Chapter Text
You had high hopes for your weekend.
Plunging from the sky into a world that wasn’t yours wasn’t one of them.
You, Captain America of Earth-928, were in a random parking lot exchanging information with Miguel O’Hara when, suddenly, the ground split open, sucking you inside, closing just as quickly as it had opened.
Your body lay sprawled on the cold ground, your breathing labored from the impact. As you regained your composure, you got down on your knees and lifted your head to look around.
It was just a dark, silent field, except for a small group in front of you, some on horseback and holding torches to light the area. Judging by the way they were dressed, you were about to guess what time period you were in. The sound of footsteps brought you back to reality when one of them ventured closer.
She was a Romani woman with light eyes and a head of thick brown hair, a silver crown with pointed tips framing her face. She also wore a long, dark red tunic, covered by a heavy cloak with a deep hood, as if she were Merlin or something of the sort. However, what really caught one’s attention about her was the scarlet, unstable, luminous energy flowing from her right hand, as if she were holding a living flame.
"Finally… my efforts weren’t in vain," she said softly, despite the hint of confidence in her voice. "Judging by the shield on your back, I’ve managed to bring a super soldier—perhaps even a captain—to our world, I suppose?"
Facing the stranger, still on your knees, you considered two possibilities: throwing your shield at the brunette, or something better—around your neck was the necklace built by Spider-Man 2099, which worked just like the advanced wrist-mounted device he used to travel between universes. Unfortunately for you, the pendant had broken during your fall. Before you could do anything, the Romani woman acted faster.
She reached out her hand to you, helping you to your feet, which took you by surprise. You gladly accepted her help and waved in thanks, despite your skepticism.
"That’s me, Captain America. Why am I here?"
"I was just about to get to that. But first, let me introduce myself. My name is Wanda Maximoff, I’m the Scarlet Witch, and these are Sir Nick Fury, his two trusted 'men,' and my brother Pietro," she said, pointing to the one-eyed man on horseback, the red-haired woman beside him, the man on foot wearing a strange helmet, and a young man with white hair, similar to Wanda, though with a more energetic demeanor. The small group approached, surrounding the captain, who remained on guard even though she had lowered her shield. "As you can see, we’ve come together as the Avengers for a greater purpose: to save our world."
"The Avengers, right? And why does your world need saving, and how would bringing me there help?" you asked, narrowing your eyes to slits as you studied the sorceress with an icy intensity.
"Someone tried to kill our king and steal the jewel from his scepter. Fortunately, that person failed, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try again. We took a look at the scene of the crime and found the weapon used in the attack, concluding that it isn’t native to this land, just like the person who tried to do this." Wanda stated, briefly turning her characteristically melancholic gaze toward Fany before turning back and continuing. "She somehow discovered this, and we believe that, as punishment, her presence is causing mysterious cracks in our sky, sucking in everything nearby. Since we failed to find her, our last resort was you, a hero from another universe, to help us."
"Okay… cool premise, but my God! Why me? It couldn’t have been Sherlock Holmes or something like that, at least!" You buried your fingers in your hair, tugging at the roots as if trying to rip out your own frustration, letting out a sigh that sounded like a stifled lament."
"I asked for a savior—not Captain America specifically. There are certain things beyond my control, but I still believe you’re the key to putting an end to all this. If I didn’t believe that, you wouldn’t be here," concluded the Maximoff twin.
"Besides, it doesn’t look like you have a choice right now, Captain." The man with the eye patch on horseback, Nick Fury, raised the point to emphasize that he knew that, even if you had some way to escape that situation, it was impossible at the moment.
"Typical insight that only the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. would have," you whispered playfully before turning to Wanda. "Let’s make a deal, sorceress: I’ll help save your world from 'imminent destruction,' so to speak, and you’ll help me by fixing this." You pointed to the shattered pendant.
"It seems to be a win-win situation; I accept." The sorceress agreed, letting out a sigh of pure relief. Her companions had no objections either; on the contrary, they seemed to feel the same way.
"Let me think for a moment… there was an attempted murder and a robbery committed by a stranger, possibly not from this world," you said, resting your index finger under your chin and organizing the information in your head as if it were files in folders, in search of a quick solution.
"Correct!" Maximoff encouraged.
"In that case, if the stranger tries again, I just have to be faster than him and steal the jewel first!" You slammed your clenched fist into your open palm, full of determination. "I’m going to need a team."
"You’re going to need a team of thieves. Nick will give you instructions on where to find them. Any other questions?"
"Just one more: what year in the 17th century are we in, exactly?"
"1602, Captain America."
You said your first name followed by your last name, Rogers.
"You should go now," she said your name before finishing, "good luck."