Chapter Eight: Experimentation
The experiments started very early in the morning. Wanda had no idea what time it was as she stumbled out of bed and down the hall to the 'lab.'
All of the other kids were lined up against the wall, facing a single chair in the middle of the room. Wanda joined them quietly, scanning the room for Pietro. She spotted him near the front of the line and sent him a little wave which he returned.
Everyone immediately straightened as a man walked in. He picked up some gloves and began to put them on. "My name is Baron von Strucker." He snapped his gloves and everyone jumped.
"You will listen to what I say and you will not try to run or you will be severely punished." Strucker continued. "Now, first in line, step up and sit in the chair."
The first in line, a trembling redheaded girl, slowly walked forward and sat in the chair. Strucker left the room for a moment and returned holding a long gold scepter that had a glowing blue ball on the end.
"The rest of you go wait outside." Strucker said and everyone left without hesitating.
When they were outside, Wanda thought she heard a scream, but it quickly stopped.
"Next!" Strucker called from inside the room. The kid who was next in line opened the door and two soldiers came out lugging a bag. Wanda gulped. It was a body bag.
She saw no sign of the redheaded girl. Wanda moved a little closer to where Pietro was. She was scared out of her mind.
Soon the line dwindled until there was just Pietro and Wanda left. Wanda took a deep breath and stepped into the room.
With an impatient hand, Strucker pushed her into the chair. He strapped her down. "Now hold still." He ordered when she squirmed a little. He grabbed the cube from the end of the staff and placed it into a contraption that fit the cube perfectly.
He powered it on and blue light shone on Wanda. After a few minutes, Wanda felt a little queasy. Then a little cold. When he finally turned it off, Wanda felt like she had been hit by a truck. Everything ached, she felt like she would throw up and her vision was going dark around the edges.
She opened the door and would have fainted if strong arms hadn't reached out to catch her. Looking up, Wanda expected to see Pietro, but instead she was surprised to see that the person holding her was the Winter Soldier.
Wanda blushed furiously and almost ran out of the circle of his arms. "Sorry." She said.
The Winter Soldier nodded and walked away.
Pietro embraced her. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine." Wanda assured him. "I feel a little strange though."
"What did they do to you?"
Just then, Pietro was called to come in. "I guess I'll find out." He said, answering his own question.
He emerged unharmed a while later. "I know what you mean about feeling strange." He told her, rubbing his back. "I feel like a fifty year old man."
Wanda giggled. "Well, you don't look like one."
They were escorted back to their cells and they didn't see anyone, except for when someone came to give them meals. The same routine continued every day.
About a week later, after more and more kids had died, Wanda realized that she and Pietro were the only kids left.
One night, when Wanda was alone in her room after another round of being exposed to the light, she felt a huge burst of energy. The burst shocked her so much that she collapsed in the ground. Her head was pounding and she could hear Pietro.
He wasn't talking but she could hear him. Was she reading his thoughts? How was this possible? He was thinking of a way to escape. She could sense his hope, but also his trepidation.
Frightened, she backed up until she was pressed against the wall. Suddenly, she could hear all the guards' thoughts. She glanced in the mirror and saw her eyes glowing red. Wanda was sure her head was going to explode from all the information she was getting.
Wanda did the only thing she could think of. She screamed.
A.N- Thanks for the reviews, guys. Don't stop. I love them :D I'll just leave this semi cliffhanger here for you to see. ;) Bye, everyone. I'll try to update again soon.
