Sunken Treasure

Posted on Fri May 16th, 2025 @ 12:50pm by Kurt Wagner & Hayden Davis & Pietro Maximoff

3,156 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Episode 6: X-Fernus Agenda
Timeline: January 3rd, 1991

X-Mansion Grounds

The first morning after the New Year had barely settled over the X-Mansion, but already the crisp winter air was being shaken loose by the sound of Hayden's sneakers hitting the familiar trail around the grounds. Her breath came in steady puffs, pluming in the cold as her scarf fluttered behind her with each stride. Most of the mansion was still easing into the post-holiday haze—leftovers in the fridge, students sleeping off their sugar comas—but Hayden had hit the track at sunrise where it was peaceful with nothing but her and—

"Fraulein Hayden!"

A certain bamf of displaced air was her only warning before a puff of brimstone followed by a flash of indigo smoke appeared on the trail ahead of her. Kurt stepped out of it with a sheepish grin, clasping his three-fingered hands together in front of him.

"Apologies," he said with a slight bow. "But I hef a much important request. Zhere is a... somewhat pressing puzzle. And you are ze vone I need to solve it. Vill you help?"

It was the perfect, crisp morning for a run. And a good way to start off the New Year, until she was caught off guard. "Eeeep!" she squealed, stopping short of running into Kurt. She took a moment to catch her breath, both from the sudden stop and the surprise. "Um, yeah, sure, I can help. Though I'm not the greatest at puzzles. I keep losing pieces."

"I vill handle ze pieces," Kurt assured her. "Come, come!"

He took her by the hand and carried her away to a far off land.

Fushimi Inari Shrine, Japan

BAMF!

The scent of brimstone lingered in the fresh mountain air as the violet flash of Kurt's teleportation dissipated. Hayden landed softly beside him, her boots squishing against the mossy stone path. She immediately pulled her scarf tighter, blinking at the sudden change in scenery.

"Give me... just a moment..." Kurt bent over and rested his hands on his knees while he caught his breath. The exertion of hopping across the planet twice was not shrugged off easily.

Hayden turned slowly, taking it all in, the quiet rustle of trees above, the flicker of light catching on centuries-old paint, the cold tingle of energy dancing across her skin.

Night had fully descended over the towering torii gates of Fushimi Inari Shrine which stretched out in endless rows before them. Their glowing softly beneath paper lanterns that swung gently in the breeze. The shrine's famous vermilion gates, once vibrant and alive with daytime prayers and camera shutters, now loomed like silent sentinels in the shadows. A faint mist clung to the moss-covered stones and crept between the carved fox statues that watched from their perches with unblinking stone eyes. Despite the beauty, the place felt almost expectant, like it was alive and holding its breath.

Hayden blinked and suddenly she was in...Japan? And it was night? Jetlag would be a problem later. "Take all the time you need," she said to Kurt. "This place is amazing." Hayden knelt down and felt the moss covered stone and the faint mist. While kneeling, she looked up at the foxes and their cold stare. A shiver ran down her spine and she turned to Kurt, "Is it just me or does this place feel different since it's night?"

Kurt straightened with a soft groan, rolling his shoulders until the last of the tension shook loose. His breathing steadied, and he gave Hayden a faint grin beneath the dim light of the lanterns. "Everything feels different at night," he said softly, as if the shrine itself were listening. "Even places like zhis. At night, they change."

He looked around, his tail curling slightly behind him as he took a step down the path between the torii gates. “And ze darkness? It veils us. From security cameras. From questioning eyes. Technically, ja, ve are trespassing, but only in ze name of something important."

He motioned for her to follow, then paused, his golden eyes bright with memory. “You know, zhis reminds me of a night back in Germany... traveling vith ze circus. Vanda and I, ve vere not supposed to be out. But ve snuck away and climbed through an old ruin just beyond ze voods.” A nostalgic laugh puffed from his chest. “It vas... foolish, romantic, a little terrifying. But somezhingk about being in a place so old and powerful, after dark, as if ve vere borrowing it for just a moment... it felt like magic.”

He looked at her meaningfully, walking backward a few steps under the next gate. “Tonight is like that. I believe zhis place holds a secret. One ve are meant to find. And I believe you—of all people—can help me find it.”

The quiet tone of his German accent mixed with the environment around them made Hayden think they were in an original Brothers Grimm tale. "I don't know," she said. "I don't like finding out other people's secrets. Especially like this...I'll admit, I'm a little scared. But if you need my help, I'll give it a shot." She continued following him through the gates, though cautiously.

"Zhat is all ve can ask," Kurt assured her.

As they descended the winding trail past the final series of torii gates, the low murmurs of night deepened. The lanterns became more sparse, leaving pockets of darkness between pools of soft amber light. A low mist clung to the ground, coiling around Hayden's boots as if the mountain itself were trying to dissuade them from venturing farther.

Eventually, the path opened into a quiet glade nestled between old stone steps and mossy boulders. At its center was a wide, still pool that mirrored the moon perfectly—so clearly that it looked as though one could fall upward into it.

Standing at the edge of the water was a tall, pale figure with silver hair and crossed arms. Pietro Maximoff tapped his foot against the gravel in rapid, rhythmic succession, his agitation practically vibrating the air.

“Finally!” Pietro huffed as Kurt and Hayden came into view. “What took you guys so long?”

Kurt raised his hands in apology, though the weariness in his shoulders hadn’t quite left. "Apologies, mein freund. Fraulein Hayden may be ze key here." Turning to Hayden, he continued.

"Zhis pool," Kurt said, gesturing toward the glassy water's surface. "Eet is more zhan just vater. Beneath it, zhere is a cavern. Pietro und I found ze upper edge of it earlier, but it is completely submerged." His face turned earnest. "Ve cannot pass zhrough. Not as ve are. But you can displace ze vater, ja? If ve can reach ze chamber below, ve could be ze first souls to set foot down zhere in over a zhousand years!"

“And could you do it before sunrise?” Pietro interjected as his impatient behavior continued. “This place turns into a tourist trap as soon as it’s daylight so we need to be gone before someone sees.”

"Okay," she said, thinking out loud, "just like that one time on the frozen lake at the Mansion. But no ice. So, here we go. Cool your jets, Speedy." She extended one arm toward the pool and the other to the ground beside her. The still water rippled as it began coming up to her and forming a solid platform under her feet.

"Alright, I'm gonna need you guys to step on with me. Then I'll form a bubble around us with the pool water and pressurize it as we descend. Once we hit bottom, we can walk to someplace that isn't flooded. Bubble and all. Here's hoping it'll be close, though...I've never tested the limits on this in the Danger Room."

The surface of the pool surged upward like a living thing, responding to Hayden’s focused will. Water wrapped around their feet in a spiraling column that solidified into a shimmering platform, lifting the trio above the edge before lowering them gently down into the waiting depths. As the pool closed over them, it was as if the whole shrine above had vanished, leaving only the echoing quiet of liquid and stone.

Hayden's control held. Around them, the water pressed in tight, held at bay by a shifting membrane that shimmered like glass, casting refracted light across their faces. The descent was slow at first, then quickened as Hayden adjusted her focus. She kept one hand extended, guiding the shape of the bubble, her brows knit in concentration.

"Zhis cave," Kurt whispered, "it was not meant to be found by modern men."

After a few more moments of descent, the water began to thin. Shadows loomed around them as a wide, ancient floor came into view. The water platform surged upward as the pressure differential forced them to the surface.

The open space was tiled, though long chipped and eroded. Overhead the ceiling was lined with luminous algae that glowed faintly in eerie blues and greens. Moss-covered pillars reached upward the bubble like long-forgotten hands, and glyphs carved into the walls flared ever so slightly in the presence of light.

Behind them, the entrance filled in again as the water settled overhead like a lid sealing a pot. And they were alone on the far side of the flooded entrance.

The air was stale and musty but breathable, a strange echo chamber of long-forgotten time. Cracked tiles beneath their feet vibrated with a faint hum vibrated beneath their boots.

On the far end of the chamber, a great circular door loomed, shaped like a closed iris, plates overlapping like petals waiting to bloom. Strange, bioluminescent script etched along the edges shimmered softly, flickering now and again, as though reacting to their presence.

"That must be it," Kurt said reverently, stepping forward. "Ze vault…"

But even as he said it, the floor beneath their feet gave a deep groan. Water, once held obediently in place by Hayden's command, had begun to find new paths, seeping through cracks in the ancient foundation. Thin rivulets trickled down the walls, shimmering in the dim glow, growing thicker by the second.

“I don’t want to die as a bloated, wet corpse,” Pietro groaned in a tone of annoyance rather than panic. He glanced over at Hayden and he had the sneaking suspicion that she wouldn’t be able to hold the water back for very much longer.

“Open the door, Kurt,” Pietro demanded in that condescending manner that sounded just like his father.

"Yeah Kurt, please. I'm starting to get tired," said Hayden. The place where they were was beautiful. And old looking. Hayden would have enjoyed it more and asked more questions, but she was too busy concentrating on keeping them alive. "Though, this is better than any Danger Room training. Can't' turn off the room and lives really are at stake. You do it or you don't, end of story. Literally." She paused a few seconds to catch her breath and refocus. "Connor would have a fit."

"Zhen remind me to never take Connor anyvhere," Kurt quipped as he sprang into action.

As the chamber trembled with the pressure of encroaching water, Kurt bamfed to the vault door in a puff of sulfurous smoke, reappearing with his back braced against the iris-like plates. The chill of the ancient stone bit into his palm as he pressed forward, searching for any sign of a mechanism—anything.

"Zhere is a notch!" he called out, pulling a small, jagged piece of metal from beneath his vest. The artifact he had claimed from Sedlec Ossuary shimmered faintly, as if responding to the presence of the vault itself. "Zhis piece fits—" he inserted it with a click into the indented groove at the center of the iris. "—but it is incomplete... I cannot make it rotate or turn! Zhere must be somezhingk else to it."

Water spilled in heavy droplets from a nearby crack in the ceiling, splashing across his shoulders.

Kurt's golden eyes scanned the bioluminescent glyphs spiraling outward from the keyhole but it was nothing he had ever seen before outside of his recent studies. "Ze symbols, I zhink zhey may be instructions," he muttered, tracing the characters with one gloved finger. "But I do not know vhat zhey mean!"

From behind him, a new splatter echoed like a dropped stone in a deep well.

"I am open to suggestions!" Kurt shouted back over his shoulders.

The vault groaned again, louder this time. Somewhere above them, something cracked. This place was waking up. And it would not wait much longer.

Hayden was struggling under the weight and pressure of the water. She looked at the runes that Kurt pointed out, but didn't recognize any of them. When her eyes moved to the next set of lettering, she saw something that looked...familiar. She still didn't know what language it was, but one word seemed to stand out.

Her love of mythology and water deities had her studying their names in several ancient languages. She studied the runes for a moment more, still unable to fully recognize them. Whatever it's origin, that one word said Calypso.

"No way," she said. But there it was in all of its bioluminescent glory. The name of the sea nymph carved into the walls of some old hall in a completely submerged cavern in Japan. "That word," she said, pointing, "I think it's my codename. I think it says Calypso. You know, the nymph born to the Titans Oceanus and Tethys. But...why? What's it mean?"

Kurt's mind raced as the puzzle pieces fell into place. He pressed his palm to the cool stone, eyes darting between the shimmering word Calypso and the swirling script encircling the iris. "Tethys… Oceanus… all primordial vater deities," he muttered, the rhythm of ancient myth echoing in his thoughts. "But vhy here? In Japan?"

He shook his head, knowing there was no time for a history lecture. Instead, he pieced together the mechanical logic. "Hayden, if Tethys is ze source, ze mother of rivers, und ve are under an aquifer, maybe ze vater itself is ze missing piece!" His tail flicked anxiously as he glanced over his shoulder at the deepening cracks, the growing chorus of drips now a steady drumbeat.

Pietro groaned, "So your big plan is to drown us faster?"

Kurt ignored him, eyes blazing as inspiration took hold. "Ze key is a trigger, but it needs hydraulic pressure. Zhis door—eet is a floodgate, not a lock." He turned to Hayden, urgency sharpening his tone. "If you can force ze vater from chamber—not back ze vay ve came, but behind ze door—it vill act like a piston. Push on ze osther side. Ze door vill open!"

He gestured at the iris, the plates already trembling under the mounting pressure. "It's a valve, Hayden. If you can channel ze vater zhrough ze mechanism, you vill be you who opens ze vault!"

Hayden nodded through Kurt's explanation, noticing the water beginning to pool at their feet. She was getting weaker, but it was either try this or die. And death was not on her to-do list today. She focused on channeling the water around them on the iris and it's trembling plates. She tried to force it through the mechanism, waiting to see what would happen. She expected it to not be instantaneous and that she would have to continue the onslaught for a minute.

But then she slipped. It was getting to be too much for her and the water quickly raised to her knees. It was here that she remembered the handwritten note inside the book from the Professor at Christmas. "The tide does not carry me, it responds to me. I am meant to navigate, not to be carried." She found a new resolve. "I am Calypso, daughter of Titans!" she yelled.

She looked at the two guys with her, embarrassed. "Uhhh, I don't know what came over me, you know. I'm sorry. Really really sorry." But The water that had pooled at her knees was quickly receding as it was being directed to the iris of the floodgate.

The iris groaned under the mounting pressure, ancient stone grinding against itself with a sound that echoed through the submerged chamber like the roar of an awakening beast. As Hayden's power surged toward the floodgate, the water spiraled in brilliant currents, pressing inward toward the notched mechanism like a living force responding to her command.

With a deep, resonant crack, the overlapping stone plates of the iris began to twist, rotating slowly, then faster as the hydraulic force Hayden summoned poured into the channels behind it. Water hissed and gushed through hidden seams, vanishing into unseen conduits. The bioluminescent symbols flared brilliantly, illuminating the entire chamber in a ghostly blue glow. The vault was responding, and then the iris bloomed open.

A thunderous rush of displaced water cascaded forward and vanished into the vast darkness beyond—a colossal chasm that stretched into shadow. The rush echoed like the final exhale of something that had held its breath for centuries. On the far side, just visible by the eerie glow of the remaining glyphs, stood a solitary pedestal carved of dark stone. Upon it, a relic floated an inch above the surface, untouched by time, its design wholly foreign. Behind it loomed a mural etched into the wall, depicting figures in poses of reverence and sacrifice, their eyes turned toward a city backlit by a glowing sky.

Kurt stepped to the threshold, blinking into the darkened chamber beyond. His heart pounded as he took in the magnitude of what they had just revealed.

"Ve did it," he whispered, voice heavy with awe. "Ve are inside ze vault." His golden eyes glinted in the low light as he turned to Hayden, still breathing hard from the effort. "You vere magnificent," he said with quiet reverence. "Calypso indeed."

"I'm never going to live that down, am I?" Hayden asked.

Both Kurt and Pietro shook their heads in laughter, though their faces conveyed different meanings in the gesture.

"Come on," Kurt said, retrieving the relic from the pedestal. "Take a rubbing of ze inscription, Pietro, and ve can all go home."

"Done." Pietro replied with rubbing in hand before Kurt had finished asking, whatever irritation Quicksilver has once had seemed to vanish now that they had been successful in recovering another piece of the relic, another step towards finding his missing sister.

"Do you think we'll really find her?" Pietro asked with an uncharacteristic amount of sincerity. "Will Wanda actually be at the end of all of this?"

"Ja, I zhink she vill be," Kurt said. "I can can believe nosthingsk else."

With all they had come for already in hand, they bamfed out of the vault.

 

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