A/N: Hello! As I mentioned before, this chapter will start on the movie's (AoU) plot, so if you haven't seen the movie yet, you will probably read some spoilers. I tried to keep it as close to the movie's story as possible. I really hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Thank you to everyone who follows and favorites my story! Please leave me a review because it truly does motivate me to write more and I also just like reading what you guys have to say :)
Disclaimer: I do not own The Avengers, except for my own original characters.
Anastasia let out a heavy sigh as she fell back on her bed. She found herself staring at the ceiling again while wondering how many cracks she could find this time. Counting the cracks on the ceiling was the only form of entertainment she had to pass the time. Staying in Hydra's base was rather boring and so she always looked forward to reuniting with the twins. She would see them every day for a few hours, which in her opinion was too little, but these rules had to be followed or else they would get punished.
The past couple of years haven't all been bad though. Yes she was imprisoned, but she had come to learn so much more about herself than she ever expected. She learned that she was a fighter, and a very good one at that. Thanks to one of HYDRA's expert instructors, she was able to become highly skilled in the field of martial arts and how to properly use her bo staff in combat. Her new acquired fighting abilities combined with her psychic talent would surely make her a worthy opponent.
That was another thing she greatly improved on. Her precognition. At the very beginning, she would have visions unpredictably throughout the day. And although they sometimes still do happen randomly, she at least has better control over them now. Not only can she see a few seconds/minutes into a possible future, she can now focus on what or who she wants to see and make it happen immediately. And even though the visions can last for up to a minute in her mind, in real time it goes by in only a fraction of a second.
Pietro and Wanda have also been able to greatly control their powers. Pietro can run faster than the speed of sound and Wanda can manipulate energy and use telekinetic abilities in ways no one knew was possible. The three of them grow stronger every day, so even though Anastasia hated the fact that she and her family were trapped, she was overall grateful for the experience they gained.
Anastasia's recollection of the past two years was interrupted by a familiar fogginess in her eyes:
Alarms go off as explosions are heard in the distance. Men rush down the hallways to retrieve their guns while the scientists bustle around the lab in panic. A loud voice comes onto the speakers:
"Report to your stations immediately. This is not a drill. We are under attack."
Anastasia blinked at the sudden vision before leaping off the bed and rushing toward her door. She didn't need to see who was attacking in the vision to know who it was. They had been preparing for this, for the day they would finally come for the scepter.
It is time.
"Strucker!" she yelled while banging on her door.
Usually there was a guard on the other side of her door, so it would only take them a few seconds to answer her. Sure enough the door swung open and in came her captor.
He looked rather confused by her outburst. "What is it?"
"The Avengers are coming."
Once those words were out of her mouth, Strucker's jumbled expression turned into a gratified one. He knew this day was coming. He knew he couldn't hide his experiments from the Avengers forever. But he was happy to have a ten minute head start.
"Come with me."
Anastasia followed Strucker out of her room and into the hallway. He led her to a corner and told her to wait there. She then heard his voice over the speakers advising his men to get ready for battle. She also saw him talk to Dr. List about deleting their data at the facility and transferring it to one of their secret files, so that they can escape with it.
"What is happening?"
Anastasia turned to her right and saw Wanda and Pietro making their way toward her. Once in front of her, Anastasia took them both by the hand and looked them straight in the eyes.
"The Avengers have come to take the scepter." She scowled.
Immediately, their eyes widened with excitement. It was finally time for them to face the man who ruined their childhood and his reckless team of "heroes".
It only took a few minutes for the first explosion to go off in the distance, signaling their arrival. Alarms suddenly went off and scientists began to panic around the lab, just like how Anastasia envisioned it. More explosions continued to detonate, but this time they were heard much closer. The building itself started to shake, causing small rubble to fall from the ceiling.
Dr. List, who was conversing with Strucker, turned to the trio smiling. "Let's show them what we've accomplished. Send out our Trinity. It's what they signed up for."
Strucker shook his head, not convinced. "My men can hold them."
Unfortunately for Strucker, his trinity had other things in mind. Pietro, Wanda, and Anastasia all shared the same look. They were ready to make their first appearance. Wordlessly they separated; Wanda slithered into the shadows while Pietro lifted up Anastasia in his arms and carried her outside. Using his super-human speed, it only took about two seconds for them to be in open air.
When Pietro set Anastasia down, she clung to him for a few extra seconds. She tightened her arms around him and whispered in his ear, "Be careful."
Pietro softly pulled away and stroked her cheek. He gave her his usual mischievous grin to ease her worries. "Always."
And in a blink of an eye, Pietro was gone.
Always so quick-tempered, she grinned.
Anastasia took a moment to breathe in the aromas of the pine trees and the freshly fallen snow around her. It felt good to finally be outside and have some freedom for once. But as she took in the atmosphere, the sounds of explosions reminded her of why she was there in the first place. So without wasting anymore time, Anastasia trudged her way through the snow and into the woods.
Inside the forest, the Avengers were slowly, but surely fighting their way against the numerous Hydra soldiers. Whenever they thought they had defeated them, another flurry of tanks and troops covertly appeared out of the fortress. It seemed the element of surprise was clearly blown because it was almost as if they were expecting them.
Blasts filled the air between both sides as the battle continued to intensify. Natasha Romanoff, who was driving a jeep, swiftly jumped off the vehicle and into the snow, but not before delivering some punches along the way.
"At long last is lasting a little long boys." She expressed to her fellow teammates while shooting the guards around her.
"And it's about to get longer."
Anastasia smirked as the red head, known formally as Black Widow, finally noticed her presence. Besides Stark, out of all the other Avengers, this was the one she was most eager to fight. She had heard all about the famous Black Widow during her years in the facility; about how she was one of the best spies and most skilled martial artist.
It is time to put my training to the test.
Both women got into fighting position. Natasha released the two taser batons from her bracelet while Anastasia took out and protracted her bo staff. They stared at each other for a few seconds until Natasha finally made the first move. She swung her batons at her opponent, but Anastasia quickly countered with her own swing. Their weapons clashed together, making a loud clank sound. They pulled away and continued, meeting each other blow for blow. They aimed, deflected, dodged, and struck; dancing around each other's attack.
Natasha then spun rapidly and swung again at her rival, but Anastasia was able to block the strike by holding her staff horizontally. However, instead of pulling away, they held their stance. As they stared at each other with narrowed eyes, Anastasia figured it was about time to end this match.
Thanks to her training, she was instantly able to activate her powers. All she had to do was focus on Natasha's future. Once she did, a standard haziness took over:
Gathering her strength, Natasha shoved Anastasia back and threw a high kick toward her head.
Reality soon faded back in as Anastasia felt herself being shoved by Natasha. But as the red head was about to swing her leg, Anastasia quickly lowered herself and did a sweeping kick, knocking Natasha off her feet. She fell hard on the ground, but before she could even get back up, the glowing blue end of the bo staff was already at her neck.
Anastasia smirked, happy to have brought down one of her enemies. "Got you."
Suddenly a loud grunt was heard a few feet away from them. Both women looked to their right and saw a man on the floor, shouting in pain. It appeared he had gotten shot by one of the bunkers and was greatly injured. When Anastasia saw the quiver full of arrows on his back, she identified the man as Hawkeye.
"Clint!" shouted Natasha.
Natasha tried to get up from the ground, but Anastasia kept her staff dangerously close to her neck. "You are not going anywhere."
"Please let me help him! He's hurt!" Natasha's tone of voice was strong, yet fragile. It sounded almost desperate and Anastasia was shocked to hear it coming from her enemy.
"Please…" she repeated, her eyes now clouded with worry.
The look in Natasha's eyes was no stranger to Anastasia. She had seen that look many times, but reflected in her own eyes. She could tell this man meant a lot to her, like family. Anastasia knew that feeling all too well with the twins. She was always worried about their well-being and would do anything to keep them safe.
With that in mind, Anastasia slowly removed her staff from Natasha's neck. The red head actually looked shocked for a moment, before running off to aid her injured friend.
Anastasia observed the two from afar as an unsettling feeling came over her. This didn't feel right. Should she really be fighting against these people? For years she hated the Avengers, but maybe she was wrong. Looking at Black Widow showing genuine care for her teammate made her wonder if she was even on the right side. Maybe they weren't the monsters she had set them up to be…
The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end when she felt an abnormal breeze whoosh behind her. She relaxed when she realized whose presence it belonged to.
"Are you ready to return to Wanda?"
Anastasia turned around to face Pietro while trying to hide her troubled expression. She was never very good at that though because he instantly noticed that something was bothering her. He reached out and gently held her face in both hands.
"Anya," he searched her blue eyes with his own, "what is the matter? Are you okay?"
The strawberry blonde just bit her lip and shook her head. "It is nothing; I'm fine."
Although Pietro was not fully convinced, he figured she would tell him what's wrong when she felt ready. So he gave her a nod and swept her up into his arms, disappearing from the woodland battle grounds. They reappeared back inside the facility, which was now completely abandoned. Strucker and his men must have tried to flee from the premises. Coward.
They eventually found Wanda in the laboratory. She was hiding in the darkness, carefully keeping her eyes on someone. Pietro and Anastasia walked up behind her and saw the person she was watching. It was a man. He was standing in front of the scepter. Anastasia couldn't really see his face since he had his back towards them, but once a flying red metal glove came and attached itself to his hand, she immediately knew who it was. It was Tony Stark.
Anastasia didn't know what to feel when faced with the man who caused her parents death. She thought she would be filled with hatred and rage. She thought she would want to hurt him as badly as he hurt her, but the truth was…she didn't feel like that at all. It just wasn't in her nature.
Tony Stark extended his arm and took hold of the scepter, as the three of them silently watched from behind. It was then that Pietro took a step forward, ready to retaliate. However, he was stopped by Wanda's hand.
He looked at his sister with disbelief. "We are just gonna let them take it?"
Wanda stayed silent, but grew a wide smile. She had a plan, of that Anastasia was sure of.
Once Tony Stark left the facility with the scepter, it was their turn to do the same. After being imprisoned for two years, Anastasia and the twins were finally free. And although they had nowhere to go, they knew they would be fine as long as they were together. But Anastasia sensed that this was not the last time they would come across the Avengers.
Uh oh, Anastasia is starting to have a change of heart…What do you guys think is going to happen in the next chapter?
