We walk until we see the shield.

It's hard to miss. It emits a light blue glow, with a thin, darker blue line crossing down to the earth diagonal from a spot higher up on the shield, I can't see where. It appears somewhat transparent, but I can't really make anything out on the other side. That's probably intentional, on the part of the Children of Thanos. There's nothing on the outside that can be useful to us in here, anyway.

The four of us stop before the shield, Tony shutting off his boot thrusters and popping open his faceplate as he settles on the ground. "Well, we're here," he observes.

Peggy gazes up at the shield, a look of distant sorrow on her face. "I remember this," she says softly.

That's right, she was in the battle at Wakanda. But I don't want to ask her anything about it, because we may be on camera this moment. It's not wise to remind Thanos that I've teamed up with one of his original enemies.

"Now what?" Veers asks. "We've found the end of the arena – which way should we go?"

I glance in one direction, along the curve of the shield, and then glance the other way. There are trees in both directions, and no indication of which way would be preferable. "Well, we know we need to find water, and food, before too long. So –"

Abruptly, I stop talking as I notice the branches rustling to our left. I lift my face, but feel no breeze – it's a localized movement. Which means some sort of creature.

Or some sort of champion.

I just have time to bring up my scepter into a ready position when a blast of green energy streaks out of the trees and hits Tony Stark straight in the chest. He's blown backwards, his faceplate snapping down as he powers up his thrusters, just barely keeping himself from landing flat on his back.

Veers and Peggy both spin to face our attacker, Peggy bringing up her pistol and Veers raising her fists, which are starting to glow. Meanwhile, I've already sent a blast of energy from the head of my scepter in the direction of the attack.

Four against one. Odds are with us.

Another shot from our attacker, and I've traced them to a perch in the branches, concealed by foliage. Aiming my scepter, I let out another beam of energy at where I calculate the branch to be within the leaves. There's a crack, a groan, a yelp, and then the branch breaks off the tree and falls, dumping its occupant to the ground.

There's a mess of dark hair and blue skin and I realize it's Minn-Erva, bringing her rifle up to bear on me. She fires and I deflect the beam into the energy shield, causing it to sizzle.

Then Korath the Pursuer charges out of the trees, as Minn-Erva is still orienting herself after her fall, with twin swords blazing with blue energy, a distinctively Kree design. He leaps through the air at us.

I turn to meet him, as the foremost one of my group, and the one with the weapon best suited to fight his. Tony is hovering in the air now, firing at Minn-Erva, as Peggy takes cover behind a nearby tree trunk, pistol out. Minn-Erva is on her feet now, rifle up, but I suddenly remember that it is a sniper – her preferred method of engagement is from long distance.

Korath's blades slam against my scepter, the energy fizzling, and I knock them back, teeth gritted. I whip the tip of the scepter toward his shoulder, which he dodges and deflects toward the ground, pulling me slightly off balance for a moment. But when he jabs at my upper chest, I release the scepter with my back hand and summon a dagger, parrying his blow as I right my footing.

Tony and Veers, meanwhile, converge on Minn-Erva, who fires off one last desperate shot and then drops the rifle, lifting her arms. Gauntlets that go to her elbows suddenly flare to life, radiating pale green energy.

I sweep Korath's legs with the butt of my spear and he falls, but he rolls to the side before I can stab him with the blade. He smacks aside my next blow before jackknifing to his feet, slashing at me with one of his blades.

Veers' forearms are wreathed in the glow of her photon energy as she spars with Minn-Erva, exchanging punches and kicks. Tony then joins the fight, but even with his Iron Man suit he's no match for the speed of the two Kree women. His suit does allow him to hold his ground, though, and when Minn-Erva manages to knock Veers down, Tony steps in and shoots at the enemy Kree, which she just manages to dodge.

Minn-Erva lashes out with her gauntlet, but Tony catches her fist in his metal glove and drills his fingers against the back of her hand. She hisses in pain and yanks back, tugging him off balance, but he doesn't let go and instead activates his boot thrusters. Twisting his body, Tony rolls in midair and jerks Minn-Erva up and off her feet.

The Kree strikes him with her free hand, the energy sparking against his suit, and her gauntleted fingers reach for his arc reactor. Tony drops her, spinning away, and he's in the process of orienting himself upright when he slams against one of the thick overhanging tree branches. With a grunt, Iron Man falls to the ground hard, a thud resounding on landing.

Meanwhile, Korath and I are still dueling, his energized blades flashing against my golden scepter, the blue gem in the head glinting with restrained power. So far, neither of us can gain an edge over the other, and sweat is dripping down my forehead, stinging my eyes. Similarly, the Kree warrior's face is beaded with moisture, cords bulging in his neck.

Then I hear a gunshot.

It's so close to me, I swear the bullet whistles past my ear. It just grazes the computer headpiece wrapped around Korath's skull, and I see sparks. The Kree staggers and I seize the moment.

With a quick forward step, I thrust the blade of my scepter through his chest, the tip cutting through the muted green and black Starforce suit easily and emerging out the back between his shoulder blades, smeared in blue blood. Korath shudders, head jerking to the side as his implant shorts out, and I lower the scepter blade, allowing his body to slide off.

The cannon sounds just as his corpse hits the ground.

I turn to where Minn-Erva and Veers are fighting again, in hand to hand combat, while Tony is slowly getting to his feet, seemingly disoriented from his run-in with the tree branch. I start toward the two Kree just as Minn-Erva strikes Veers hard in the chest.

The blow, strengthened by the energy gauntlets, sends Veers flying backward.

Straight into the shield.

There's a scream, a burst of spidery lightning rippling out through the shield from the point where she struck, and then Veers falls to the ground and doesn't move.

Minn-Erva smirks and I throw a dagger at her just as Tony, now on his knees, blasts her.

My dagger impales her neck at the same time as his blast hits her chest. Minn-Erva topples, the cannon booms.

I run over to Veers as Peggy comes out from behind her tree, holding her gun up and scanning our surroundings for any more attackers. Falling to my knees, I flick my eyes across my partner's body, searching for whatever the shield did to make her scream.

The back of her Starforce suit – I'm just noticing that she's wearing red, blue, and gold colors instead of the Asgardian gold and dark green combo I thought she would use – is blackened, burnt by the shield energy. Her blonde hair is charred as well, and the skin on the back of her neck is red.

"Is she all right?" I hear Peggy ask behind me, her voice concerned, but it sounds like it's coming from miles away. Biting my lip, I gently take hold of her shoulders and turn her slightly onto her side, brushing a strand of her hair away from her face.

Her body is limp under my touch. She's unconscious, perhaps more. There was no cannon, so I don't allow myself to think she's dead, even if that would be the easiest option for me. Veers is too tough for that. She has Kree blood.

But still...the sight of her prone form, so still, so lacking in life...it makes me want to scream, to kill something. My heart is pounding, and I have no idea why. Perhaps I've just seen too much death recently, too many people I know dead and gone and lost to me forever. Perhaps I just don't want Veers to be another number to that tally.

Tony kneels down beside me, faceplate flipped up. "Move aside, Loki," he says, pushing me away. Still stunned, I allow him to take my place, Tony muttering to himself as he checks her pulse, easing her back down onto her chest, and then studies the burnt area on her back.

Because it's just hit me, exactly why Veers' injury is affecting me. It's because of Gamora. In this moment, lying still and unconscious, she reminds me of Gamora, bent and unmoving from the torture Ebony Maw inflicted on her.

And now everything makes sense.