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TWO | SECOND-IN-COMMAND

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HANDS CLASPED BEHIND his back, Apollos admired the scenery from their large window. They had just arrived on Earth aboard their starship, the Domo, and were told that they have to eliminate the Deviants, apex predators that hunt and wipe down all life. He tilted his head to the right as he witnessed humans crawl out of their tents to eat. Their starship was invisible to their naked eye and they had no idea they were already hovering above them.

"Apollos..."

The Eternal didn't have to turn around to know it was Ajak standing behind him. "So, this is... Earth."

"You're spending too much time alone here." observed Ajak, now walking up to his right. "The others have been looking for you."

"It's just that everyone including you can remember Olympia," confessed Apollos, glancing down to his feet. "But I somehow don't? It's frustrating. I'm the only one here who feels like something is wrong."

Apollos couldn't exactly explain what he was feeling. He perfectly recalled his memories in Olympia, but he felt like he never actually lived them. It was like it was just there, just implanted for him to believe. Actually, it all started when Phastos and Gilgamesh talked to him about their life in Olympia and a bothersome feeling pestered him then. From then on, he withdrew from the rest of his group, preferring to be alone so he could think more about it.

"And you know my instincts are never wrong, Ajak. You told me so yourself." He added, now turning to fully face his leader. He was displeased with what he was feeling. Apollos' intuitive precognition never made a mistake, it was always accurate. Like earlier, his instincts told him that he should stay by the entrance of their huddle room. Even though he didn't know why exactly he should do it, he followed and later on, discovered that the reason why his intuition advised him to stand by was because Sersi was going to trip over her feet and he caught her just on time before she collided with the ground.

"It's the reason why you made me your second-in-command. Look, I remember these memories, but I don't feel like I've lived them or experienced them myself. There are even gaps in my memory -- "

"Apollos, listen to me." Ajak soothed him, her voice like honey in his ears. Placing her hands on his arms, she reassured him, "I'll explain why this is all happening, but I need you to focus first on the mission. Can I trust you to do that?"

Apollos inhaled, nodding his head. There were many things he should focus on first. Earth was in need of their help and protection from Deviants. "Yes, of course."

"Good. Now, I believe Gilgamesh and the others will be needing your assistance. We have sighted four Deviants on our landing site."

Without saying another word, Apollos proceeded to leave the room, heading over to where their fighters were. Gilgamesh, Thena, Kingo, Makkari, and Ikaris stood by, waiting for him. They were all wearing the uniforms they were provided with. Apollos glanced at his own suit, a plum and silver one.

"What took you so long, Apollos?" remarked Ikaris as he prepared for their descent to Earth.

"I was busy."

"With what?"

Apollos retorted, "With something that is completely none of your business."

Truth be told, there was something about Ikaris that set Apollos off. He couldn't distinguish what it was exactly, but it was there. For the last three days he knew him, he was always peeved with his presence. But, he respected Ikaris as a fellow Eternal. The rest of their team chortled at his response and they looked all ahead.

Their group consisted of eleven and were divided into two, the thinkers and the fighters. Apollos belonged to neither of them. His ability to sense future events and combative skills put him in between these two classifications. Sometimes, he felt like he was really supposed to lead their team since he was both. Round golden steps appeared beneath his feet and soon, lowered them to the land.

The very first thing Apollos caught sight of was a Deviant menacing a primitive human tribe. "Makkari, Kingo, go protect the human camp. Thena, Gilgamesh, take care of that Deviant by the cliff. Ikaris -- "

"I'll take the one that's by the shore. I got it."

Apolos forced himself not to roll his eyes. Actually, his internal voice advised him to go for the Deviant that was on the sea, but he let Ikaris choose his enemy. "Your choice, then."

"Did I make the wrong decision?"

"Yes. That's what happens when people interrupt me." he declared before taking a leap to attack the predator near the group of women and children, choosing to let Ikaris face the Deviant by the shore. He dove downwards, the azure skies, the singed-brown desert below, all a blur. His focus was anchored solely on his target. The wind whipped his hair back and cold air blew on his face as he kept falling further and further.

Keeping his chin tucked to his chest, he moved his body and placed his hands flat on the floor, tucking his head. Push forward with his legs, he performed a dive roll, landing immediately on one knee. His eyes zeroed on the creature ahead of him, quick as lightning, he looped his hands to form a shimmering bow and arrow, just as his intuition warned him to sway his body to his left.

The Deviant darted round, intending to wrap it around Apollos to crack his ribs like firewood when it drew tight. But the Eternal was already warned. He followed what was told of him and was able to rapidly shoot four arrows made of pure cosmic energy to the Deviant's neck.

The creature roared and charged forward to Apollos and listening once again to his instincts, he stepped aside to his right and with his right hand, he drew back another arrow for the strongest blow he could give. He stabbed the Deviant in its eye and didn't even flinch when its blood splattered across his face like paint. Multiple tendrils emerged from its back flickering horribly in and out, but could not reach him. Delivering one strong strike to its side, Apollos pierced the arrow in its eye deeper, controlling it to burn and melt a large portion of its head -- including its brain, killing it instantly.

The tall Eternal stood there watching the dreadful creature coil and move like a strand of wire long after it had died, and the sandy ground, as one might expect, was a shambles. He spun around to see how the other members were doing.

The fighters of the Eternals -- Kingo and Makkari, Thena and Gilgamesh, and Ikaris successfully defended the camp from the apex predators. That was when the thinkers of their team -- Ajak, Sersi, Druig, Phastos, and Sprite disembarked from the Domo, joining them.

"You knew I was going to get injured." confronted Ikaris as he stepped to Apollos who only impassively stared at him.

"Well, you shouldn't have interrupted me."

"You should've told me."

Apollos' lip quirked upwards. "I wanted you to face the consequences of your decision to interrupt me, Ikaris. Lesson learned is?"

"Go away."

The Eternal's eyes glinted with amusement. "Gladly."

Ajak approached the two of them, her eyes narrowing on Apollos. The second in command only shrugged, causing the Prime Eternal to release a deep sigh. Gently placing her hand on Ikaris' wound, she used her power to heal Ikaris, the contusion on his shoulder sealing shut.

Then, they presented themselves to the race they were assigned to protect like gods incarnate. Druig noticed a group of humans raising their weapons at them and used his power to calm the humans. Ajak then nodded at Sersi, giving her a signal to converse first with the humans. The olive skinned Eternal swallowed as she stepped forward. As a gesture of goodwill, Sersi picked up a flint knife, transformed it into a more durable blue and gold one, then handed it over to a local boy who recently lost his father to the Deviants.

Apollos then took his turn and softly touched the boy's skin, immediately learning the language they spoke as he absorbed the knowledge he needed. Straightening his posture, he faced the gathering humans.

"Do not be afraid." he bowed his head in humility, speaking their native language perfectly. "We are here to protect you."

IT WAS APOLLOS' tenth time in Germany, and never in his immortal life did he expect it would be because he will be involved in a physical brawl of two factions that disagreed on an Accords. The Leipzig-Halle Airport was empty and the Eternal heard it was because Iron Man evacuated the whole area. He was informed by Natasha that they were there to stop Captain America's team from escaping with the Winter Soldier, the one responsible for the bombing of the Vienna International Centre within Austria.

The looming Eternal kept his gaze steady at the assassin's head, admiring the color of her hair. Natasha had just convinced him to join Stark's team in bringing in the rogue Avengers. "We're here. Tony!"

"Nat!" greeted Tony back, turning around to face her fully. Now, Apollos was aware of who was in front of him. Tony Stark, the superhero in red and gold advanced armor, the one who put a missile through a Chitauri mothership, an Avenger. He had already heard many things about him. "Who do we got here?"

"One of my two ideas." announced the agent. "Tony, this is Paul Vernon. Paul, this is..."

"I know." interjected Paul, stretching his hand out for a shake. "You're Tony Stark, Iron Man."

Tony shook his hand. "Good, you already know who I am. Great to have you on this team, buddy. So, tell me, what can you do?"

Apollos raised an eyebrow. "What do you want me to do?"

Tony's expression morphed that into surprise and he glanced at Natasha. She shrugged. "I like this guy." proclaimed the genius. "Come on, we have a whole rogue team to stop."

Minutes later, Tony led them all onto a private runway, heading for a grounded chopper. He instructed them only to standby for his signal. He watched Tony slam an electro-disabler onto the chopper behind a couple of cargo boxes just as Captain America and the Winter Soldier stopped running.

"Wow, it's so weird how you run into people at the airport." remarked Tony, his helmet retracting back into his suit. "Don't you think that's weird?"

"Definitely weird."

"Hear me out, Tony. That doctor, the psychiatrist, he's behind all of this." reasoned Steve Rogers, the man who Apollos heard was out of time.

Just then, a masculine figure wearing a panther suit leapt over a truck to show himself. Apollos recalled him being called the next King of Wakanda earlier during the introductory period. T'Challa. "Captain."

"Your highness."

"Anyway, Ross gave me thirty-six hours to bring you in. That was twenty-four hours ago. Can you help a brother out?"

"Hey, are you okay?" Apollos heard Natasha check on him. He blinked. It had been quite long ever since someone asked how he was.

He swallowed, "Yeah, yeah. I just... I have a feeling this is not going to end well."

It was already obvious that the end result of this was not going to be good. Tony Stark and Steve Rogers had opposing views about the Sokovia Accords and Steve believed that Barnes was innocent. "Yeah, I got that feeling too. I think we all do." agreed Natasha just as she came out of her hiding spot. "Steve, you know what's about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?"

"All right, I've run out of patience." Tony cupped his hands around his mouth. "Underoos!"

Out of nowhere, a web shot out and a blue and red blue zoomed in, stealing Captain America's shield and binding his hands. The figure landed on top of a truck cab, the shield steady on his hands.

"Nice job, kid."

The red and blue blur Apollos saw turned out to be the teenager he met earlier. Peter Parker, he remembered his name. He wondered why a young man like him was brought into this. "Thanks. Well, I could've stuck the landing a little better. It's just the new suit..." he paused. "Well, it's nothing, Mr. Stark. It's -- it's perfect. Thank you."

"Yeah, we don't really need to start a conversation."

"Okay. Cap, Captain." Peter Parker saluted the hero. "Big fan, I'm Spider-Man."

"Yeah, we'll talk about it later. Just..." Tony attempted to cut him off, but the kid only continued to greet them all.

"Hey, everyone."

Tony sighed, sounding resigned. "Good job."

"You've been busy."

"And you've been a complete idiot." commented the billionaire, infuriated. "Dragging in Clint. Rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn't even want to leave, a safe place. I'm trying to keep... I'm trying to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart."

Apollos' lips curled into a frown. This event reminded him of the night their Prime Eternal decided to let them all go so they could start their own lives.

"You did that when you signed."

"Alright, we're done. You're gonna turn Barnes over, you're gonna come with us. Now! Because it's us! Or a squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction about being impolite." shouted the hero in red and gold armor.

The quinjet.

Apollos tilted his head to the side when he heard his internal voice speak about a quinjet. Crossing his eyebrows, he pressed the button in his intercom, telling the words that were repeating in his head. "The quinjet, Stark -- "

Steve held his hands up and an arrow whizzed past its middle, slicing the web off. "Alright, Lang."

Suddenly, a guy sized up out of nowhere and stole the shield, passing it back to Steve. "Whoa. What -- what the hell was that?" James Rhodes questioned what just happened.

"I believe this is yours, Captain America." the man declared in admiration before Tony and James flew off, announcing their next part of the plan.

"Alright, there's two on the parking deck. One of them's Maximoff, I'm gonna grab her. Paul, Rhodey, you want to take Cap and the small guy?"

Apollos nodded, coming out of the shadows to finally make his entrance. Without hesitation, he fired an arrow between Rogers and his companion, making it explode as it whizzed past their heads. Stunned by the flash, they were thrown away from each other and the Eternal took the opportunity to attack with James Rhodes.

"Got two in the terminal, Wilson and Barnes."

"Barnes is mine!"

Apollos was about to catch up with Steve Rogers when he saw Natasha battling the guy who sized himself up earlier. "Look, I really don't want to hurt you." he raised his arms in surrender.

Natasha smirked. "I wouldn't stress about it."

And with that, she hit her opponent in the groin and he miniaturized, throwing her head over heels. Defending herself quickly, Apollos watched as she zapped him off her wrist. Deciding now to interfere, he delivered a roundhouse kick to the guy, slamming into a nearby truck and leaving a small dent. The Eternal offered a hand to his recruiter. "You alright there, Romanoff?"

"Yeah, I'm good. You?"

"Doing fantastic."

"Great. I'll just have to check up on him." Natasha jutted her chin forward to let Apollos see a man holding a bow and arrow weave his way through the chaos smoothly.

"Alright, be careful."

"Thanks!"

The War Machine.

Alerted by his gut instinct, Apollos rushed over to James Rhodes just as a truck suddenly enlarged in the air, heading towards him. Summoning his bow and arrow, he released a large glowing arrow that sliced the truck in half before it exploded. It landed on each of their sides and they came out unharmed and unscathed.

James Rhodes glanced at him. "Thanks, man." Then, pressed at his intercom. "Hey, Tony, I'm now getting pissed."

The Eternal observed as Captain America's team assembled all together at their front, running as they lined up. Their run was cut off however upon the arrival of a red skinned guy with a yellow crystal glowing on his forehead. A fizzing stream of energy seared across their runway and they stopped.

"Captain Rogers," acknowledged the man -- or android, based on his robotic voice. "I know you believe what you're doing is right. But, for the collective good you must surrender now."

Apollos and James Rhodes stepped forward to accompany the newcomer with Tony, Natasha, T'Challa, and Peter following as well. Their eyes were fixated alone on the group that decided to go against the law. The Eternal wanted to shake his head. He shouldn't be part of this. He never was part of this. He only joined this brawl to avoid his Eternal race being exposed to the public.

"This is gonna end well." remarked Natasha, casting a knowing glance at Apollos. They then began to stride towards the other team with grim determination etched on their faces.

"They're not stopping."

"Neither are we."

And then, they all broke into a sprint.

Apollos took a deep sigh. Why the fuck am I here again?

"IS THAT -- IS that a private jet?"

"Yes, Sersi. What else would it be? A cargo ship?" retorted Sprite, entering an area of the Charles de Gaulle airport that led to the planes owned by VIPs.

"You're this rich?" Ikaris asked, almost in disbelief.

"I can fully confirm that I am richer than Kingo even with all of his wealth combined."

"Wait, wait, hold on... you know how Kingo is doing right now?" Sersi questioned.

Apollos sighed. "Well, I kept tabs on most of you. I know that Kingo made a name for himself in the Bollywood film industry. An actor, dancer and director, known professionally as Raj Kingo Deva." he narrated as if he knew this information by heart. Even though they didn't check up on him, Apollos made sure that he was aware of his former family's well beings. He would occasionally hire someone to see how they were doing.

"Sersi, you're a museum scientist and a history professor at the Natural History Museum. Sprite, you stayed in London to keep Sersi company." After this, he spun around his heel to glare at Ikaris. "Then, you, Ikaris... you left your wife in the 1920s, deciding to live on your own and working various jobs, moving from one place to another to keep your immortality hidden."

Ikaris narrowed his eyes, but kept silent. Apollos smirked.

"Gilgamesh and Thena are still in Australia, living in exile. Druig managed to run a community controlled by his own mind control powers deep within the Peruvian Amazonia. If I'll be honest, I think he started a cult there." Apollos pushed open the doors to the passenger boarding bridge for them and greeted the pilot that will be flying them to India. "I haven't really heard anything from Phastos and Makkari other than Phastos is in America and married and Makkari is in Iraq."

"Wow." breathed out Sersi. "You were right in suggesting to find Apollos first, Ikaris."

"Even though you all didn't come to pay me any visit, well except Ajak..." Apollos mentioned, his heart aching at the thought of his mother figure and closest friend. Ajak would always come to see Apollos, informing him of her vast spiritual adventures and in turn, Apollos would tell her how much he interfered in human affairs and conflicts. Ajak, as expected, was often wary and hesitant especially when she knew he was going to participate in the Time Heist, an attempt to bring half of the population back. Even when she advises against Apollos, she could do nothing as he would always tell him that he cannot bear to see his beloved grieving for their loss. "I thought I need to keep tabs on each of you so that if you get into any big trouble, I can help."

"That's..." Sersi started. "That's very thoughtful and kind of you, Apollos."

They all boarded the plane and Apollos almost smirked at the flabbergasted expressions of Sersi and Sersi. "Damn, Apollos, where'd you get all the money to buy this?" Sprite questioned, casually sitting down on one of the cream colored seats.

He then turned his head to Sprite to answer her question. "Well, centuries after we separated ways, I decided to become an archeologist, collecting many famous artifacts because I know exactly where they are -- well, at least, it was my intuition who knew where." Loosening his necktie, they stepped foot inside the plane. "I then sold them to interested buyers at a high price which attracted the U.S. government's attention and they contracted me to search for artifacts they wish to discover first. Wine, anyone?"

Sprite raised her hand, "I want one."

"White or red?"

"Red."

Nodding, Apollos pulled open one of the lavish cabinets that housed all his wine and other alcohols. Grabbing a wine glass and a wine bottle, he carefully poured some for him and Sprite. He swirled his own wine as he passed the other glass to the redhead. The child-looking Eternal slowly imbibed his drink as Apollos sat down on his seat and opened the television. "Then, by 1972, I met a man named George Lucas. My exploits and conflicts with different groups across the globe inspired him to create Indiana Jones... just like how you three became the inspiration for J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan, it was then that -- "

"... This morning, an unprecedented global earthquake swept nationstates across the world, causing damage and panic. Many have speculated its connection with the Blip. The UN has called for an emergency meeting..." broadcasted the newscaster on their television, cutting Apollos' narration of his past adventures.

"Sprite, didn't you say that it was a Deviant who killed Ajak?" The Eternal turned off the television, facing his companions.

"Yes, we believe the Deviant that attacked us in London was the one who killed Ajak and absorbed her power. It healed itself just like Ajak. I almost heard it speak, Apollos. Deviants have never done that in the past." explained the redhead, feeling uneasy.

Apollos exhaled, his right eye twitching. Oh, what he would do just to get his hands on the Deviant that murdered Ajak and crush its neck with his bare hands.

Ikaris leant forward. "It was coming after us instead of humans, Apollos."

"It's the first time in our seven thousand years here on Earth that -- oh! " Sersi gasped, clutching her chest. Doubling over, a golden sphere that Apollos recognized as the Celestial Communication Sphere rose from her chest and flew into Apollos.

"Sersi! Sersi! Are you okay?"

Apollos' vision no longer presented the interior of his private jet, but instead pitch-blackness speckled with ebony, covered in a sable shroud. A world spread out before him in the distance, a blanket of blackness. Emerald storages glowed from the distance and this paled the Eternal. He saw this place before. He knew this.

The World Forge.

"Welcome home, former Prime Eternal."