Standard Disclaimer: All rights belong to those whose rights they belong to, primarily Marvel, though quite namely not me. Don't own a thing aside from my OCs.
Avengers Training Facility Medical Ward
Upstate New York
Steve Rogers entered the medical wing with a tray full of coffees, still in his red-white-and-blue uniform. He headed down the right-hand hallway to see Sam, Natasha, and Clint pretty much where he'd left them, sitting in chairs and facing the windows overlooking one of the rooms.
He quietly handed his cups out and then took a seat next to Natasha, holding a coffee cup of his own. "No change?"
"Nothing yet," she replied softly in her husky voice.
He looked into the room to see that, indeed, there had been no change at all in the scenery. Wanda and Vision still stood around the head of the bed where Rebecca lay semi-reclined, her long red hair brushed and fanned out on the pillow behind her.
At the foot of the bed was Caitlin, her pale green eyes focused intently on her sister, while her arms remained wrapped around her middle.
"Has Cat budged at all?" Rogers murmured.
"Not a muscle," Barton confirmed. "It's been three hours."
"Yeah," Rogers sighed. "That girl can be scarily intense sometimes."
"I've seen it in both of the girls," Natasha mused thoughtfully. "Sometimes they get this focus, when they zero in on an objective. Rebecca, I've only noticed it when we spar. But Caitlin can get that way about people, too."
"Yeah, I've seen Rebecca get that way," Sam murmured.
Barton glanced over with a grin. "Oh, have you now?"
Sam cleared his throat and looked away without answering.
Just then the motionless redheaded girl began to stir slightly, quickly escalating into an erratic thrashing. Caitlin was at her side in the blink of an eye, holding her down and talking to her urgently.
The other four ran into the room as well. Sam was the first one through the door and rushed to Rebecca's other side to also hold her down.
"What happened?" Rogers asked quickly.
"Piper is resisting us," Wanda gritted out, sweat beading on her forehead.
"Once he has hold, he is quite formidable," Vision added, seemingly unperturbed.
"C'mon, Becca, fight him, you fight him off dammit," Caitlin was urging. "Come back to us…"
"Why didn't this happen with the little girl, Jillian?" Natasha asked.
"I suppose she was not as important to keep out of our hands," Vision mused.
Eventually the small redheaded girl stilled. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she went limp once more.
"Vision?" her brunette sister prompted tensely as she and Sam stepped back again.
"It is well, Caitlin, we have broken through the barriers…" Vision paused. "She is beginning to emerge."
No sooner had the words left her lips than Rebecca sat upright, sucking in a lungful of air. "Caitlin!" she gasped.
"Here! I'm here," the brunette said, placing her hands on her sister's shoulders and turning her towards her. "It's okay, you're okay now…"
Rebecca blinked at her, her pale green eyes wide and unseeing before they focused on Caitlin's face. Once they did, she broke down into tears.
"Oh, Caitlin, I was… I was so alone, and… and…"
"Shush, it's alright," the brunette murmured, pulling her into a tight hug as she sat on the edge of the bed. Her sister clung to her with trembling desperation, sobbing wordlessly. "I'm here for you, I'm here now."
Sam ran his hand along her silky red hair with a sad smile before stepping back. "We should leave them be," he whispered. His advice was met with nods, and Wanda, Vision, and Barton joined him outside on the benches.
Rogers paused at the doorway, looking back at Natasha. "You coming?"
She shook her head and moved over to sit on the other side of the two girls. "They're my sisters," Natasha said with an uncharacteristically soft smile as she leaned in to wrap her arms comfortingly around them as well.
Rogers nodded knowingly and closed the door behind him, leaving only the sounds of Rebecca's weeping in the room, as her sisters enveloped her in their comfort.
Eventually she calmed down and ended the embrace, wiping her face on the hem of her hospital gown. "I apologize," she whispered brokenly. "I just…"
"Do not apologize, mladshaya sestra," Natasha admonished softly. "You have nothing to apologize for. We understand."
Rebecca looked at the redheaded woman, her pale green eyes wide with wonder, as Caitlin glanced between the two of them, grinning widely.
"You called me 'little sister'," she breathed.
"I did. And you are, the both of you."
Caitlin grabbed Rebecca around the neck in a one-armed hug. "See? Family."
The small redheaded girl nodded slowly, a grin growing on her own face as well. "Family." She turned to Caitlin once she'd let go, and reached out to touch her face. "You… you came for me. I remember fighting you, but you held on and wouldn't let go…"
"Of course I did, silly," the brunette laughed, giddy with relief at the return of her sister. "You'd do the same for me, right?"
"Yes, I would," Rebecca replied earnestly. She moved her hand to then touch Natasha's face, still unbelieving that she'd been included in the same vein as Caitlin. "And you were all there…"
"We all came for you, Becca," Natasha replied warmly. "Once an Avenger, always an Avenger."
"Made some new friends along the way, too," Caitlin chuckled.
"I recall…" Rebecca furrowed her brow. "A strange man, clad in red and blue…"
"Yep, Spider-Man. He wasn't able to help with your recapture, but he helped me escape."
"Caitlin, I…" Rebecca looked at the girl who could easily pass as her twin and sighed remorsefully. "I am so sorry for what occurred…"
"Nah, don't be," she replied cheekily. "I kicked your butt, it's all good."
Rebecca snorted, her humor restored. "You most certainly did not," she huffed. "I recall that much, at least."
"Nope, your memory's faulty. There was definitely some butt-kicking being done by me."
"You are delusional."
"Me? You're the one who just came out of, one, mental bondage, and two, a coma. Don't be throwing words like 'delusional' in my face, missy."
Rebecca regarded her sister levelly, though with humor dancing in her eyes. "Missy? Really?"
They stared at each other in mock seriousness before dissolving into giggles and hugging once more.
"Don't you ever do that to me again," Caitlin whispered.
"I shall endeavour not to," Rebecca whispered back, smiling softly.
Natasha stood up and straightened her jumpsuit. "Well, if we're better now, Fury and the others are sure to be wanting a debrief on anything you can tell us, Becca."
"Yes, certainly," the petite redhead agreed, releasing her sister. "May I first… Is Sam here?"
"Course he was, and still is," the brunette snarked, nodding towards the windows between the room and the waiting area in the hallway. "He hasn't left this area since you got here."
"He has not?" she replied quietly, a soft smile on her face as she regarded the lean, dark-skinned man. Seeing her look at him, Sam quickly entered the room.
"Hey, girl, how are you feeling?"
Rebecca pulled her legs around and stood up to walk over to where he was standing. She stopped inches from him, her bare toes almost touching his boots, and looked up at him solemnly. Her hand drifted upwards and ran down his chest hesitantly.
"I am well," she replied, her eyes sparkling with emotion. "I am sorry if my… if what happened to me caused you distress."
"You're sorry?" he asked incredulously. He pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. "You can be the most frustratingly sweet girl sometimes…" he murmured. "But don't ever be sorry for circumstances outside your control, alright?"
"Very well," she mumbled, her words muffled into his chest. "May we stay like this for a little while longer, before we have to debrief?"
"Becca darlin', we can stay like this as long as you like," he replied, smiling into her hair and inhaling her fragrance.
Caitlin crossed her arms and leaned up against Natasha. "They are so cute together," she whispered.
"It's almost like watching a pair of puppies in love," Natasha whispered back humorously.
"I know, right?"
"You are both dorks," Rebecca's voice drifted out from somewhere around the vicinity of Sam's chest.
"True, true," Caitlin giggled.
A half hour later saw Rebecca dressed in her casual style of clothing, consisting of jean shorts and a light green crop top, though foregoing sandals as she felt the need for the extra comfort. Her long red hair was back in a braid again, lying against the back of her neck. She sat at the large conference table with Caitlin on her right and Sam on her left, clinging to both of their hands under the table's surface.
The rest of the Avengers had assembled as well, Rhodes, Wanda, and Vision, along with Fury and Hill. There was muted conversation around the table, and Natasha leaned in to offer Rebecca a reassuring smile.
"How are you holding up, Becca?"
"I am well now, thank you," she replied sincerely. "I am prepared to answer what questions arise." She glanced over past Sam and offered both Vision and Wanda a grateful smile. "I thank you both very much for your efforts to restore me."
Wanda smiled back while Vision nodded solemnly. "You're welcome, Becca," the Sokovian woman replied. "It was our pleasure."
Just then Stark came in the room, followed eagerly by Spider-Man. "I'm just sayin', you got the urge to tinker, let me know," the billionaire murmured. "I've got a playland all set up and nobody else to share my toys with."
"That would be so cool, I mean, um, yeah, great, thanks!" the webslinger stammered out, obviously somewhat awed to be standing next to the man. He paused upon noticing Rebecca sitting at the table. "Hey, the sister's here! And without the freaky eyes! Does that mean we're all on the same team now?"
"We are, yes," Rebecca nodded calmly.
"Fantastic! Because you pack one hell of a swing for someone smaller than me. And that's saying something."
Caitlin gave her sister's hand a squeeze and rose from her seat to stand in front of Stark, regarding him levelly. "I need to talk to you before we start."
Stark looked at her askance. "Um, sure Kitten, what's up?"
"I…" The brunette sighed and looked down at her sandaled feet. "I'm sorry for, um, my earlier behavior. You did help me, and I acted like an ass, which I know is usually your thing…"
"This is the strangest apology I've ever received," Stark mused.
"Oh, hush. So, yeah, I'm sorry, okay? And… I appreciate what you've done for me… for us, me and Becca."
His eyes twinkling, he rested his hand on her shoulder in a friendly way as the diminutive brunette girl looked back up at him.
"I understand Kitten, you were going through a lot. Trust me, I didn't take any of it personally." He shot her a grin. "I'll try to be less of a dick in the future, though, okay?"
Caitlin laughed. "Well, I wouldn't want you to strain yourself or anything."
"Alright, kids, if we're done with the socializing, let's get on with this," Fury ordered. He waited for Stark and Caitlin to find their seats before continuing. "I have some direct question for you, Rebecca, before you give us an account of as much as you can remember. Can you confirm for us what it is Piper is building? Is it an amplifier?"
"That is correct," she affirmed. "It is an amplifier for his ability as well as a circumvention for his shortcoming."
"Shortcoming?" Hill interjected.
"His ability to… enslave mutants is based on a line of sight. He must see the individual and they must be looking at him to initially control them, but once it has been established he need not be present."
"Huh," Caitlin mused. "So the hand gestures were unnecessary?"
"That is correct. They were showmanship to draw the eye."
"And this amplifier, it means he no longer needs to see them to do his thing?" Fury questioned.
Rebecca nodded. "Yes, that is correct."
"Right. One more question, then, if you please. Do you know where it is he's building it?"
"I am not certain, but I do know two facts regarding the location. I was never there." Rebecca looked down at the table briefly, furrowing her brow. "One, it is within the borders of the United States. And two, it is somewhere in the middle of the country, near the northern border."
"All right, then, we can get Friday working on a search algorithm," Stark mused, tapping on his phone. "Run through satellite pics. Alright if I hijack your feeds, Nick?"
"That's fine, Stark," Fury replied. "At least you asked first this time," he added in a mutter. Then, in his normal sonorous voice, he continued. "Miss Brown, anything else you can add regarding this amplifier?"
"He is unsure as to the capabilities, but potentially it will spread his influence globally," she reported quietly. "He would maintain this control even after detaching himself from the machine. He also hopes he might attain some control over metahumans as well, though he believes this to be unlikely."
"But why?" Rhodes interjected. "Why is he doing all this?"
"To take over the world," Rebecca replied calmly. "He means to eliminate all opposition, use his enslaved mutant army to eliminate the superheroes and metahumans. Once that is done he will be the global power."
"He's nuts," Sam muttered.
Rebecca turned to her boyfriend and smiled sadly. "Undoubtedly so, yes. He is very insane."
"Right. So then, Rebecca, can you start at the beginning?" Fury sat back down but laced his hands in front of him, regarding the small redheaded girl intently.
"Yes, I will do so, sir," she said politely. Rebecca closed her eyes briefly, visibly centering herself, before opening them and continuing. She kept her gaze on the center of the table, not meeting anyone else's eyes while she talked.
"I was standing in the warehouse with Caitlin. Then I felt the darkness envelop me once the Pied Piper looked at me and used his power. He took complete control of me, though I could still observe what was occurring, dimly. I had to struggle to do so, but I continued to fight his influence." She paused and blinked. "I fought as hard as I could," she added in a whisper.
Both Caitlin and Sam squeezed the hand that they were holding on to, giving her the courage to continue.
"He sent me to kill Caitlin. I was able to restrain myself somewhat when out of his direct sight, but once I returned to him I was again completely controlled. He knew I fought him, and was confused as to how I could do so, but resolved to keep me close and not send me out on his raids. He considered me valuable." She smiled bitterly at that. "He then began to see me as a pet."
Sam growled quietly, not liking where this was going.
"He believed I would be an effective bodyguard, but also found me to be… decorative. While he worked out of a different warehouse in the city, he had me disrobe and stand by attentively."
"Sonofa…" Sam snarled, clearly trying to keep his temper reigned in.
Rebecca looked at him curiously. "He did not touch me, merely looked."
"That's not the point, Becca, you don't just… He…"
Caitlin looked around her sister towards the seething man. "Sam, you're forgetting we don't have a problem with nudity."
"That is correct," Rebecca said softly. "It was somewhat demeaning, but not because of the lack of clothing. Although, I was grateful that I gained his attention for this rather than one of the others."
"Yeah, Kitty or Blink or any of the others would have flipped once we rescue them," Caitlin mused.
"It would likely be traumatic for them, yes." Rebecca sighed. "I hope that he has not changed his… affections since I left."
"And he never touched you?" Sam asked probingly. "Never laid a finger on you?"
"Not in a sexual way, no. He thought of me as property and ornamentation. As I said, a pet. Not as something to be desired in that fashion."
"What changed, Rebecca?" Fury asked, attempting to get the conversation back on track. "How did you end up at that ambush site?"
"I was serving as his bodyguard still," she replied solemnly. "He was there in person to capture the convoy. He knew it would happen eventually, and had one mutant child staking the property out to observe when the evacuation would begin."
"And then when Rogue and I attacked, he called you in to defend himself," Caitlin mused.
Rebecca smiled at her sister. "That is correct. If it is any consolation, you frighten him greatly."
"It is, actually," she snickered. "Makes me feel all warm inside that I can scare a lunatic. Um, why exactly is it I scare him?"
"He knows of your capabilities, and of your focus, from my memories," the redheaded girl replied softly.
"Well, good," Caitlin retorted. "He should be scared. 'Cause I'm gonna eviscerate him when I see him next."
"Not if I get to him first," Sam grumbled irritably.
"Anything else you can think of, Rebecca?" Fury asked. "Anything at all that can help us?"
She pondered this for a moment before her face lit up with inspiration. "I believe I know of one component he is missing. It was vexing him."
"There you go with the 'vexing' again," Caitlin snickered quietly.
"Hush," Rebecca admonished, bumping her affectionately with her shoulder. "The component was originally at a Stark Enterprises laboratory in Los Angeles, but it was moved before he could retrieve it. He was still searching for it, or a substitute, without luck so far."
"Right," Stark murmured as he looked through his phone. Without further preamble he flicked his phone at the main screen to send a three dimensional rotating image up there. Fury just sighed resignedly.
"Does that look like it, Red?"
"It does, yes…" she murmured. "I do not know the name of it, though."
"No need, it's an emitter, a hypersonic one to be precise, and very specialized. I moved it by plane into my tower, it arrived just a half hour ago. So see, crisis solved." He grinned cheekily. "You're welcome. Now we just need to find the bastard and kick his teeth in."
"Mr Stark?" Rebecca asked hesitantly.
"Yep?"
"Why did you call me… Red?"
"It's your new nickname, I get to call your sister Kitten, so you're Red. Hopefully you'll give me less grief about it."
Rebecca blinked her eyes uncertainly. "I… do not disapprove."
"Works for me!" he replied cheerfully. "Okay, Friday's got the algorithm running, so let's get a plan of attack together. Other than just, y'know, attack."
"Tony, we'll make a tactician out of you yet," Rogers smirked as he rose to his feet. "First though I'd like to hear from Wanda and Vision. Is what you did for Becca permanent?"
"It is not," Vision replied solemnly.
"Then she's not going." Caitlin and Sam looked at each other in surprise as they'd said the words simultaneously.
Rebecca sighed and released her grip on their hands, sitting back with her arms crossed. "Samuel Wilson and Caitlin Brown. I do love you both, but do not presume to tell me what to do."
"Do not worry, any of you," Vision reassured them. "I can continue to shield her from Piper's influence if I keep a mind link open with her."
"Um," Rebecca blinked her eyes uncertainly as she gazed at the red-skinned android. "How, exactly, does that work?"
"I establish the link through physical contact. Since I was linked with you previously to erase Piper's influence, it will be easier to both establish and maintain, even if we are not physically connected. So long as I remain fairly close, you shall be shielded."
"Well, that sounds like a plan, then!" Caitlin said excitedly.
Rebecca leveled her sister an irritated look, and the brunette girl quickly backpedaled. "Er, I mean, yeah I like the sound of that, and what do you think of it, Becca?" She smiled at the redhead weakly.
She next turned to regard Sam, who raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, I leaned my lesson, not sayin' a thing here."
With a noncommittal grunt, Rebecca turned back to Vision. "This is an acceptable plan. Thank you, Vision."
"Which is what I was sayin' anyways…" Caitlin grumbled under breath. Rebecca quirked her eyebrow, but this time her sister answered it with a cheeky grin.
"Okay then, we're all on board for this. Right?" Rogers turned to first Stark and then Spider-Man. "I know the two of you aren't involved with us, at least not you, Spider-Man, but we'd really appreciate all the help we can get on this one."
"Hey, I was in on this from the start," the webslinger assured him. "Not backing out now. They might recall my hero card if I do."
"You know I'm in, Cap," Stark added with unusual solemness.
"Okay then. Once we get a target, we'll all go in. Flyers with enough fuel… meaning Iron Man and War Machine… will escort the rest of us on a quinjet. At the site those who can will drop from high up, then Barton will bring the jet in and discharge the rest. We go in hard and fast, keeping in mind that all of our opposition consists of people fighting against their own will."
"You cannot rely on any of them being able to resist," Rebecca added quietly. "That close to Piper, his control will be absolute."
"Hey, Red," Stark interjected. "Does this Piper fella just let his soldiers do their own thing, or does he control them directly?"
"Both, actually. But with all of us attacking, he will most likely leave them to attack individually and only take control if he is threatened."
"So we need to keep the pressure on him, that will make the majority of their response disorganized," Rogers mused. "Their biggest advantage so far has been Blink. If we can remove her portals from their use, it's a standard slugfest, and we can handle a straight-up fight."
Rebecca and Caitlin shared a look and a nod. "We'll take Blink," Caitlin assured him.
"Alright, good. Then for Piper himself, flyers will try to break through as best as possible. The rest of us keep the soldiers occupied as best we can, keep the focus on us." Captain America sighed resignedly. "That's the best I can come up with right now without knowing the field of battle."
"Works for me," Spider-Man said cheerfully.
Natasha leaned in on her forearms. "I think we can safely assume they'll all be there. Every mutant he's managed to control."
"And who knows how many more kids he's grabbed," Barton muttered.
"We can only take it as it comes," Rogers stated. "Let's go gear up, meet in the hanger in fifteen. Even if we don't have a location by then, we can get into the air and start moving in that direction."
Fury stood back up again. "Any questions? No? All right then. Let's do this."
Caitlin remained seated for a little while. Rebecca and Sam stood together in a corner talking softly, as were Natasha and Maria in the other corner.
She noted that Fury had eased up behind her.
"Something on your mind, sir?" she asked archly without turning around.
With a heavy sigh Fury eased himself into the chair that Natasha had just vacated. "I was about to ask you the same thing."
Caitlin glanced between the two couples, and then to the others as they filed out. "This feels different," she murmured. "Like… I dunno. I'm not sure how we can all make it through this. Not if we're trying so hard not to kill who we're fighting, but they're gonna try their damnedest to do so to us."
Fury leaned back in his chair thoughtfully. "Going into battle… is full of uncertainties. Lack of control. It's been said, no plan survives contact with the enemy."
Caitlin smirked. "So, what, it all comes down to improvisation?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Well, that I can do," she said softly. "Improvisation is my middle name." She tilted her head to the side. "Actually, I don't have a middle name. I could actually make that my middle name."
"I worry about you sometimes, sister," Rebecca sighed from behind her.
Caitlin craned her neck to regard her sister with a wide grin. "Only sometimes?"
"True. Most of the time."
"Well, good. If you weren't then I'm doing something wrong."
Rebecca shook her head with a smile as Caitlin rose to her feet to walk out with her. "You are exasperating."
"Aw, you love me anyway."
"Of course I do. It does not make you any less exasperating."
"Hey, remind me when we get back, I wanna try something with Vision's help…"
The rest of their conversation was lost as they exited the room. Fury looked up to see that Natasha and Maria had already left as well.
He sighed again, thinking back to numerous missions he'd sent good people off to that never returned from them.
"Good luck," he murmured.
A/N: So not much action here, nor the next one really which will involve lots of setting up and the like, but then we should have the giant fight scene in chapter eight.
Much love to my readers, favoriters, followers, and reviewers!
Stay shiny!