It's not that complicated within the scope of things I can already do.
I offer my magic at the shrine, and I strengthen my bond with this Old God in particular. In return, I can use her magic when I need it. I guess it'd be considered "dark magic", which is why I can channel her version of necromancy. And before you ask: I don't hear her voice in my head, and I don't get weird nightmares. I haven't really felt any worrisome side effects.
If there is a catch... I suppose I'll deal with that when I get there.
[putting herself up as a guinea pig for this, regardless of what happens. after all she's done? she wouldn't be too upset if something did happen to her.]
I know her name. Soris Immaneus. She is the patron of dark blessings, offering her strength during difficult times. Something along the lines of keeping balance to nature.
Had it not been for her magic, we wouldn't have been able to unlock the door in the island when we went to look for you guys.
That's one hell of a risk. But not the first one you've taken.
[ Taking in the power of an Infinity Stone being the most notable one. Steve gets that Wanda did what she had to in the moment, and that she doesn't regret her choice. There isn't much point in dwelling on something that's already done, or in reprimanding her for it. ]
Offering strength during difficult times, keeping balance in nature, that all sounds good. Dark blessings, maybe less so.
But how did you unlock it, exactly? I didn't really get to watch.
Just because something has the word ‘dark’ doesn’t mean it’s automatically evil, you realize.
[lol the darkhold—let’s not talk about that.
the explanation involves some amount of delving into a magical explanation, so wanda makes sure that she can explain it in ways that steve can understand.]
The island had a lot of wards created from High Magic—the kind of magic related to Solvunn and the Old Gods. I used Soris’s magic to unlock some of those, and then I reanimated a corpse to use it to undo the seals on the door.
[she’ll skip the specific details; it wasn’t pretty, as can be imagined.]
With all due respect, Steve. A lot of our experiences from before don't really mean anything here. And yeah, one of them. It wasn't pretty, but I wasn't the one who set up the seals in the first place.
I know, I know. But you can't blame a guy for having a kneejerk reaction to it, either. Can you at least tell me why you think this is different?
[ And she's right. If he thinks about it, it's not that different from using a knocked out or straight-up murdered guard's eyeball to pass a retinal scan. Wanda did what she had to do, and she got those captives out. He isn't holding any of that against her. ]
And yeah, it's good you were there. There's no telling what would have happened otherwise.
I don’t know if I have the words to explain it well. It’s just a feeling I have. I know what it was like to be taken in by something evil. This feels different. Like I have control.
I know for a fact that Stephen is keeping an eye out, in any case. Should anything happen.
[should things take a dark turn, that is. wanting to lighten things up a bit, she adds:]
Leave the gods to us, and you guys can look around for the lizards over in the Cities.
[ That's all fair enough. Wanda would know the difference, and Steve trusts her to be able to tell, and especially to never want what happened with the Darkhold to repeat itself.
The extra security of Stephen being in the loop doesn't hurt, either. And really, Steve's glad to hear it if only because it means that there's some trust there too. ]
Right. I'll check in with Hilda and Altaïr, then, and see if they want to follow up on the lead with me. Sounds like we'll have our work cut out for us searching.
And Wanda, sorry if I got a little overbearing there. With so much distance between us, it's easy to feel like I'm missing stuff.
No need to apologize. Sometimes I take for granted that things that happen in Solvunn make sense to me, but not outsiders. You can ask Matt how many times I've told him something like I'm putting spiders in jars like it's the most normal thing, and he really doesn't know what to say.
[again, trying to keep it light.]
I'm 33 years old, you know. I know that's young to you, but I think I'm pretty ancient by now.
I was putting together a present for someone. Nothing witchy about it. If we're comparing it to you, then it's not. Most everyone in Solvunn who has been summoned is pretty young, though. Makes me dread to think that I'm supposed to be the adult at any given point.
I mean, you have raised a couple kids. [ He knows that Billy and Tommy are kind of a hot button subject, but he also knows that Wanda wouldn't want to forget them. ] I'm sure you do just fine. I didn't realize Solvunn's Summoned trended so young, though.
[if wanda knew that steve knew henry, then she could easily explain this away.]
It's the perfect present for a weird guy who happens to like spiders.
I would be really disappointed if actual children were summoned, but— I guess that was true for a while. Now that I think about it, I'm not generally the oldest in the group.
[there's claire, erik, and she imagines sandor is quite old himself...]
I'd make a census for you, but I don't know if the shark-man knows what age is and I don't know what raccoon years are in human years.
[she's jesting. she's allowed to do that instead of sticking to the bit about her raising kids.]
I can't believe you're calling Rocket an animal. That's rude, Steve.
[okay, okay... they have gotten a little off-topic, but hopefully he can sense the teasing in her words as she sends that over.]
Nothing to worry about at the moment, no. The Council finally chose someone to replace Josselyn with in the Tertiary Settlement. Isar Hart is his name, in case you're curious. Might be a little tense for a while because he isn't a native of that settlement... but I'm sure it'll work itself out.
[one way or the other, and wanda hopes the summoned can have a positive effect in the matter, too.]
All you need to know is that there is The Council that has a leader from each of the three settlements. Isar is from the Secondary settlement, so him being in the tertiary one is quite something. I've met all three current council members, yes.
Probably another one of us to chuck into the ‘experiment on’ umbrella.
( that is to say, wanda can empathise; the message reaches steve with a soft quality—an understanding.
they can leave it at that. )
I know how this is going to sound, but: I like Isar. I’ve talked to him a few times before and he seems to have a good head on his shoulders. The fact that he’s moved to the Tertiary Settlement despite having his goats elsewhere means that he’s willing to make a commitment for the settlement.
( his goats are so important, steve. )
I think he might have a pact with an Old God, too.
[ Steve and Wanda both volunteered, for better or worse. Wanda's situation had been more desperate than Steve's, but the fact remains that she and her brother had gone along with Hydra's goals.
But yeah, better to leave it at that. ]
His goats? Are they that big of a deal?
[ Wouldn't it be more significant that he was moving away from friends and family? Of course, Steve's quickly distracted by the mention of an Old God. ]
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How does this pact work?
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[putting herself up as a guinea pig for this, regardless of what happens. after all she's done? she wouldn't be too upset if something did happen to her.]
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[ Taking in the power of an Infinity Stone being the most notable one. Steve gets that Wanda did what she had to in the moment, and that she doesn't regret her choice. There isn't much point in dwelling on something that's already done, or in reprimanding her for it. ]
Offering strength during difficult times, keeping balance in nature, that all sounds good. Dark blessings, maybe less so.
But how did you unlock it, exactly? I didn't really get to watch.
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[lol the darkhold—let’s not talk about that.
the explanation involves some amount of delving into a magical explanation, so wanda makes sure that she can explain it in ways that steve can understand.]
[she’ll skip the specific details; it wasn’t pretty, as can be imagined.]
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[ But no, he isn't going to invoke the Darkhold unless she does, and he doubts that she will.
The explanation she gives is simple enough to follow, and also reveals that this isn't even her first time reanimating something. ]
Whose corpse? One of the cultists?
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[ And she's right. If he thinks about it, it's not that different from using a knocked out or straight-up murdered guard's eyeball to pass a retinal scan. Wanda did what she had to do, and she got those captives out. He isn't holding any of that against her. ]
And yeah, it's good you were there. There's no telling what would have happened otherwise.
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[should things take a dark turn, that is. wanting to lighten things up a bit, she adds:]
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The extra security of Stephen being in the loop doesn't hurt, either. And really, Steve's glad to hear it if only because it means that there's some trust there too. ]
Right. I'll check in with Hilda and Altaïr, then, and see if they want to follow up on the lead with me. Sounds like we'll have our work cut out for us searching.
And Wanda, sorry if I got a little overbearing there. With so much distance between us, it's easy to feel like I'm missing stuff.
[ Like deals with dark gods. ]
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[again, trying to keep it light.]
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[ It sure sounds like it. ]
33 already? It's hard to imagine. I wouldn't really call it ancient, though.
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[ It sounds more like an awful prank. ]
I mean, you have raised a couple kids. [ He knows that Billy and Tommy are kind of a hot button subject, but he also knows that Wanda wouldn't want to forget them. ] I'm sure you do just fine. I didn't realize Solvunn's Summoned trended so young, though.
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[there's claire, erik, and she imagines sandor is quite old himself...]
[she's jesting. she's allowed to do that instead of sticking to the bit about her raising kids.]
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Yeah, guess the fact that Solvunn seems to attract the talking animals makes everything a little wonky.
Anyway, it's fine. We got pretty off-topic.
Things are okay over there overall, though? In Solvunn.
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[okay, okay... they have gotten a little off-topic, but hopefully he can sense the teasing in her words as she sends that over.]
[one way or the other, and wanda hopes the summoned can have a positive effect in the matter, too.]
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[ So long as they don't do it in his earshot... ]
That is good to know, even if I'm pretty clueless when it comes to Solvunn politics. Where if he from, then, if not that settlement?
Have you met him?
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[ So, he's opted not to pry too much. He's not sure if Rocket himself even knows all the details, honestly. ]
Got it. So it's some sort of checks and balances situation? What do you make of this Isar Hart guy?
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( that is to say, wanda can empathise; the message reaches steve with a soft quality—an understanding.
they can leave it at that. )
( his goats are so important, steve. )
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[ Steve and Wanda both volunteered, for better or worse. Wanda's situation had been more desperate than Steve's, but the fact remains that she and her brother had gone along with Hydra's goals.
But yeah, better to leave it at that. ]
His goats? Are they that big of a deal?
[ Wouldn't it be more significant that he was moving away from friends and family? Of course, Steve's quickly distracted by the mention of an Old God. ]
What makes you think that?