Chapter One
Liam

Stevie and I spent our honeymoon on Alfheim in the queen's palace. It was amazing; we hiked through the forest surrounding the capital, we swam in the lake at the base of the mountain, we ate out at incredible restaurants, Stevie painted, I played on my guitar, I took so many pictures I think I broke my camera, and we had lots of sex.

It was heaven.

We've been back home for about two weeks now and we still haven't gone back to work. Soroya told us to enjoy some more time off because, and I quote, "Once you both go back to work you won't have a second alone for months on end. Enjoy it while it lasts."

So naturally, Stevie and I are spending our time off repainting our house. We've already done the bathroom on the first and second floor as well as our bedroom. We're now painting the kitchen; pastel blue, just like we had talked about before the wedding.

"How would you feel if I added something to the walls?" Stevie asks, setting his paintbrush on the tarp we have on the floor.

"What do you mean?" Setting down my brush as well.

"Like if I painted some flowers and trees. The pastel blue looks like a sky and it's got my mind going a mile a minute about different designs I could add to make the room come to life-"

"Babe, that would be great. Do whatever you want with the walls; not just in the kitchen but in the others as well."

Stevie jumps up and down, that boyish grin I love so much spreading across his lips. "Thank you! Thank you! Uh, it will be so pretty, you'll absolutely love it."

"Of course I will. I love everything you do."

Stevie's bottom lip juts out and he places his hand over his heart. "You are such a romantic, Mr. Barnes."

"Only when it comes to you, Mr. Barnes."

My husband-Shiva do I love calling him that-stalks towards me, a heated glint in his eyes. "Why don't we take a break?"

"We've only been painting for ten minutes." I remind him, grinning like an idiot as he reaches me, hooking his fingers into the belt loops of my jeans, pulling me against his chest.

He pouts. "Are you saying you don't want to take a break?"

"Like you even have to ask."

Just as his lips begin to brush mine, a familiar beeping sound echos throughout the kitchen. Stevie half groans, half grumbles as he pulls his Kimoyo Beads out and presses down on them. His aggravated expression fades however when he sees Soroya's face project from the beads.

"Mom? You okay?" He asks, suddenly looking alarmed. I share the feeling; Soroya looks very stern, maybe even grave. She hasn't looked like that since Kieran announced the Kree were coming to earth.

I pray to Shiva nothing like that is happening again.

"There's someone here to see you." Soroya's eyes fall onto me.

I feel my eyes widen. "Me?"

"Yes, apparently he's a bounty hunter hired to give you a message. Zy just called and told me about it. I'm heading to the palace now and I suggest you do the same."

"Do we know what the message is about?"

"No. All Zy said was that the bounty hunter arrived at the palace twenty minutes ago and has a message for Lee."

"Alright, Mom, we're on our way." I tell her, already heading out of the kitchen to get my suit.

Stevie follows a minute later, having ended the call with Mom. "You have any idea what this message is about?" He asks me, his gaze growing hard with worry.

As I strip and change into my suit, I give my husband a helpless shrug. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Stevie lets out a melancholic sigh. "I think our time off is officially over."

Despite the intensity and uncertainty of the situation, I chuckle. "I'm afraid so."

-

When we enter the throne room of the palace, we find it crowded with people. Zy and Livy are both in their thrones, the latter still wearing her white coat and stethoscope. Soroya is here of course, as are Bucky, Alex, Khari, and surprisingly Naomi and Kieran. Kieran is standing closest to the man in the middle of the room, watching him like a hawk. I'm assuming this man is the bounty hunter Soroya told us about, but even if she hadn't told us his profession, I would have guessed it. He dresses like a mixture between Han Solo and Boba Fett; black boots, brown pants, a couple blasters at his belt, and black armor covering his chest and arms. He also has a helmet at his feet; it's shaped kind of like Boba's, albeit black and more scuffed. The bounty hunter himself is Krylorian; pink skin, purple eyes-well eye, one of his eyes is mechanical and shaded a bright gold.

When the bounty hunter's gaze settles on me, his mechanical eye seems to zoom in one me and shine, studying me. It's quite unsettling.

"Is this Liam Knight?" The bounty hunter directs the question to Zy.

Zy inclines his head. "Yes. Now, tell us who you are."

The bounty hunter bows his head. "The name is Garren Havardur, otherwise known as-"

"The Krylorian Silencer," Kieran finishes for him, shaking her head. "I have to say, I had hoped I would never see you again, Garren."

Garren just smiles her way. "Good to see you too, Kieran. How long has it been? Eighty years?"

"Eighty two."

Garren chuckles, looking her up and down. "What the fuck happened to you? You were the Kree's most lethal assassin and now you're married to a human and working as an Avenger. You must be bored."

"Could say the same about you. A bounty hunter? Really?"

He shrugs. "Well, since Krylor rejoined the Nova Empire, there has been less and less jobs for an assassin to take. I believe I have your wife to thank for that."

In order to prevent the situation from intensifying-probably by Kieran slicing this man's head off-Zy cuts in. "Tell us your business here, Havardur. What do you want with my brother in law?"

"I am to give him a message." Garren says, fishing out a hologram disk from his pocket.

"Who hired you?" Soroya asks.

"Listen to the message and you'll find out." Garren replies, then he presses on the center of the disk, and a hologram of another man appears.

This man is beautiful; pale white skin, long blonde hair, pointed ears, glowing blue eyes, and he's wearing a black body suit with cream colored armor over it. In the center of his chest plate is a black stair with a blue center, it's an insignia of some kind. I'm about to ask what it means, but then I hear Kieran murmur two words: Dark Elf.

I feel my stomach drop.

"My name is Erebos," the Dark Elf begins. "The Dark One, the Annihilator of Light, the last of the ancient Dark Elves, and the destroyer of the order of the Light Knights. Since the fall of the Dark Elves by the Asgardians I have lived in the shadows, waiting for destiny to call upon me again to continue my purpose of slaughtering all light in this universe. A week ago, I heard word that the Light Elf queen dubbed someone a Light Knight a few years ago, someone who was not even a true Light Elf, but a human with Light Elf powers. I knew then that my purpose must be continued immediately, I knew destiny was calling me to destroy this half breed Light Knight just as I did his predecessors before him."

I sneak a glance at Stevie, and I find him ashen. He looks like he's on the verge of passing out. I reach out and grab his hand, squeezing it tightly, but he doesn't look at me. He keeps staring at Erebos, at the Dark Elf who thinks it's his life's purpose to destroy me.

I grip my husband's hand even tighter.

"Liam Knight, in three days, when the sun reaches the crest of the sky, you will meet me on Svartalfheim to meet your doom. To ensure you come, I have stolen something precious to you. Two somethings, to be exact," Erebos walks away for a second and returns with two bound and gagged people by his sides. My parents. "If you fail to meet me, if you bring anyone with you, if you try any tricks, your mother and father will pay the price."

Erebos smiles, and a chill races down my spine. "I will see you soon, Light Knight."

The last thing I hear is the sound of my parent's whimpers of fear, then the message ends, and silence fills the room.

"You kidnapped his parents for him. Didn't you?" Kieran breaks the silence, her hardened stare on Garren.

Garren holds his hands up in surrender. "I just did my job."

"You realize that Liam is an active member of the Avengers, and playing a part in the threatening of his life and the kidnapping of his parents could have you thrown in prison for the rest of your life," Naomi now stands beside her wife, her hands clasped behind her back and her head held high. Ever the politician. "And don't argue that you are outside of our jurisdiction. You're a Krylorian citizen and Krylor is a part of the Universal Alliance, and the Avengers have jurisdiction on every planet apart of the Universal Alliance. But you had to have known that, so why take the job?"

"You act as if Erebos gave me a choice, Ambassador." Garren keeps his face impassive, but I can see real fear in his eyes.

"He threatened you?"

"Erebos isn't exactly the kind of guy to ask for things nicely. He said he would kill my wife if I didn't do as he asked."

"You're married?" Kieran asks incredulously.

"Yes, to an Aakon bounty hunter."

Kieran rolls her eyes and mumbles, "Fucking hypocrite."

"I know what it's like to be in your shoes, to have the people you love held over your head so you'll be forced to do dark deeds," Soroya says, casting a glance at Alex. "Let me make you a deal. If you tell us anything you know about Erebos, anything at all, I will give you a two day head start before I send someone after you. Plenty of time to get your affairs in order and get you and your wife far away."

"You would really do that?" Garren asks disbelievingly.

"Yes, I would. But only if you hold up your end of the bargain."

Garren nods, his eyes falling to me. "I don't know much about him. I know he's very old, very full of himself, and has the power to control darkness."

"How so?"

"When he threatened me and my wife, he expelled this dark shadow from his hands and...it started to consume my wife right in front of me. Everything got cold, all the light in our house went away...he didn't even break a sweat. Using his powers was as natural as breathing for him."

"Sounds like the opposite of Lee's powers." Livy murmurs, sharing a worried look with Zy.

"Anything else?" Stevie asks, his voice tight. Unnatural.

"No, I'm sorry," The bounty hunter's eyes now fall onto Soroya. "Thank you for your generosity, Director. I will never forget it. If you are ever in need of my services, I'm sure Kieran can find me and I'll be there to assist you."

Soroya inclines her head. "I will keep that in mind. Now you should get going. Remember, you have two days."

Garren nods to her, then sets his eyes back on me and says, "Good luck, kid."

I say nothing, far too stunned to speak, so I just give him a small nod, and that seems enough for him. Garren Havardur hands me the hologram message, bows his head to Zy and Livy, then he takes his leave. The second he's gone, Soroya walks right up to me and says, "You are not going alone."

Of course that's the first thing she addresses. "Mom-"

"No," Her tone and expression leave no room for argument. I realize as she stares me down that she isn't speaking to me as my mother, but as my boss. "If you try to leave on your own, I'll throw you in a holding cell while I send others to Svartalfheim, and you'll be suspended from field duty for three months; working a desk job as an analyst. Do I make myself clear?"

I nod once, knowing arguing will get me nowhere. "Yes."

Her expression softens slightly, and so does her voice. "This is not just for your protection, but for your parents' protection as well. Now, I think we should have a conversation with Queen Verena, because I bet she has knowledge of this Erebos and will be able to consult us as to whom I'm sending with you to Svartalfheim," She brings her hand up and cups my cheek, her thumb brushing my cheekbone. "I promise we will fix this, Lee. We will take care of Erebos, we will get your parents back, and we will make this right."

She leans up and kisses my cheek, giving me one of her signature warm and nurturing smiles. I try to return it, but the dread and fear I feel prevents me from doing anything other than nod. With a final flash of her smile, she pulls away from me, ordering everyone to meet her at the Avengers base to call the queen, and without a word, everyone obeys her command and piles out of the throne room. All except me and Stevie.

There's a beat of silence, then Stevie says, "I'm coming with you." His voice is quiet, so quiet I wonder for a second if I imagined it.

I turn towards him, seeing his grave expression, and begin to object. "Stevie-"

"I'm coming with you." He says more forcefully.

"You have no idea how dangerous this guy is-"

"Neither do you."

"You could be killed-"

"So could you."

"I won't let you put yourself in danger like this for me!" I practically shout.

Stevie marches right up to me, his face fuming, and yells, "I'm your husband! I promised to be by your side in this life and in the next, to protect you and take care of you, so if you're going to go risk your life against some goth elf then I'm. Coming. With. You. And there's nothing you can do or say to prevent me. I-if you tie me up, I'll just shift and escape. If you steal a ship and leave, I'll steal one myself and follow after you. If you hit me over the head to knock me out-I'll just walk it off and come anyways. Bottom line here is that I'm coming with you and there's nothing you can do about it."

As soon as his spiel is done, I capture his lips with mine, my exasperation and fear melting away leaving nothing but my all-consuming need for him. He returns my kiss with equal enthusiasm, clutching and clawing at me as if trying to meld our bodies into one.

When I pull away from him, he's flushed and breathless, his earlier anger completely gone. Now there's nothing but worry and love in his gaze, and it pierces my very soul. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," He leans forward and presses his forehead against mine, sucking in a deep, shaking breath. "Where you go, I go. Alright?"

"Where I go, you go." I agree.

He huffs out a laugh of relief, then nods. "Okay, now that that's settled, let's go talk to the queen."

I nod back, brushing my lips against his. "Let's."