Uncomfortable Parallels

The helicarrier was only thirty minutes away from Montreal, but Wanda was bleeding out quickly, so there wasn't enough time. There was, however, a SHIELD base five minutes outside of Montreal with a fully stocked medical facility, so they took her there. When they arrived, the medical staff met them at the gangplank and wasted no time in placing Wanda on a stretcher and whisking her away for surgery.

She was in good hands, but Thor could not stop himself from worrying. They had only been friends for a few months, but he felt a fondness and true admiration for the young witch. Her power rivaled the brightest students at the sorcery academies in Asgard. Were she Asgardian, her power would rival that of Amora or even Loki. Even if she paled in comparison, she was young – having not even reached thirty years yet – and had time to hone her craft even more. There was so much she did not know of the mystical arts.

Guilt seeped into his heart to accompany that worry. He was so occupied with Abomination that he neglected to keep an eye on either of his teammates. He was so preoccupied that he failed to take note of the magical signature that Mjølnir detected until it was far too late. It was clear that the purpose the battle with Abomination served was to keep him distracted while the sorcerer targeted Pietro and Wanda.

Thor felt like such a fool. He could not believe he actually thought that Pietro would betray his only flesh and blood. That assumption may have stemmed from Thor's own experience. The Maximoffs' closeness mirrored closely the relationship he and his brother, Loki, shared once upon a time. Of course, Loki's own feelings of envy, jealousy, and inferiority – however misplaced – deteriorated that relationship into one of hatred and conflict. Thor would admit readily that his own headstrong, puffed up pride played no small role in that deterioration.

However, there was no such conflict between the Maximoffs that Thor knew of. Pietro was the kind of man who would readily give his own life in exchange for his sister's. That was the kind of love that could not give way to jealousy, as his own did with Loki.

It was obvious why they were targeted. Wanda's magic made her extremely dangerous to the efforts of these so-called Masters of Evil, and Pietro was the fastest being on the planet. Only one other person could match his speed, but she was a hero. Thus, it was imperative, from the viewpoint of evil, to eliminate these great threats. With his speed, Pietro could serve their purposes in many ways. But, why not Wanda, as well? Surely, her hex magic – as unpredictable as it was – would serve their purposes in just as many, if not more ways.

It boggled the mind that whoever this sorcerer was would ensnare one twin, but not the other. And, verily, it would make more sense to capture Wanda first instead of Pietro, as I doubt he could bring himself to lay a finger on his beloved sister. It made little sense. Unless, the sorceress was unable to ensnare the mind of a woman. Amora.

Thor swallowed uneasily and leaned against the wall of the hallway he absently wondered in. He did not wish to make assumptions or jump to conclusions about the woman who had been by his side for so many years. While she flirted often with the gray areas between good and evil – as Loki had before his fall – she was not outright evil.

Or was she?

Nay, it cannot be. There has to be another explanation. There must be!

"She's in surgery now. I hope these guys know what they're doing." Thor flinched subtly and turned quickly to find Carol standing nearby. "Sorry. I thought you heard me walking up."

"'Tis no trouble." He noticed that she was keeping her distance. "I apologize for my earlier rudeness. I should not have taken my frustration out on you, Milady."

Her expression went blank, proving that she had not been expecting an apology. "Oh, I, yeah, it's no problem." She toed the lines segmenting the floor beneath their feet. She appeared to have taken on the demeanor of a child in the presence of an impressive authority figure. Unsurprising, as she was in the presence of a god. His father, Odin, stated some time ago that humans had become too intellectual to give way to reverence for deities. It was nice to see that some still held that respect. "So, what happened to Quicksilver?"

He sighed. He did not wish to lead her astray with theories and his own ideas, but what else did he have? There was no other explanation. "His mind has been snatched from his conscious body and replaced with the whims of the sorceress we have been hunting these last few days. I do not wish to say more until I know with certainty the identity of the goddess in question."

"Great," she muttered. "Monsters, goddesses, and superspies. This is way above my paygrade."

He could not help but smile. "You will grow accustomed to it, Captain. I regret to say that this is an everyday occurrence for us." He was beginning to regret agreeing to bringing in this civilian into their world. The missions they encountered day in and day out were many magnitudes more dangerous than anything Midgard's armies underwent. It was little surprise that she was overwhelmed.

She didn't answer immediately, but tilted her head down in deep contemplation. "I need a drink," she spoke eventually. "A strong one. I'll see you later, Your... um... Godness."

He laughed. "Fair thee well, Captain." When she left, his mirthful smile disappeared, replaced by a contemplative frown.

Hours passed without Thor having moved a muscle. Only when the Steve and the other Avengers – minus Tony, he noticed – arrived did he stand from the wall he was leaning on. "My friends, 'tis good to see you."

"What happened?" Steve asked. It was clear that he was straining to keep his emotions from revealing themselves through his voice. His feelings for the witch ran deeper than Thor previously thought.

"Pietro's mind has been ensnared by the sorceress allied with the Masters of Evil. She used him as a pawn to attack Wanda," he explained.

"Damn it," Steve cursed sharply. "Where is he now?"

"I know not. He vanished into the wind before we departed for this place. I am waiting for the healer to inform me of Wanda's condition. I only pray to Odin that 'tis not as grave as I fear." He had seen many a warrior in Wanda's condition after a battle, laying on the ground, broken and bloodied. It was a condition that they could walk away from with a simple healing spell and some rest. On Midgard, however, things were not the same. They did not believe in the healing properties of magic, preferring to use their technology. This meant that Wanda's recovery would take much, much longer.

He chose to trust them with his friend's life; but, if it seemed that it was taking too long, he would take her to Asgard for proper healing.

"I see." He sighed sharply and walked away.

Thor watched him leave briefly until he could see him no longer, then turned his attention to Natasha. She was standing next to Bruce, arms folded with a contemplative frown on her porcelain brow. "Sorceress, hm?"

His raised an eyebrow. "Aye?"

"It's gender specific. You have a lead."

He sighed. She was sharp, much sharper than he. "Aye. I do not wish to make idle accusations until I know for certain."

"Fair," Clint spoke. "But, while you're busy investigating that lead, this magician could be conjuring up a spell to turn us all until frogs."

Thor shifted uncomfortably. "You speak truth, Clint. I shall away to Asgard to inquire of... my suspect's whereabouts. Only then, if I find confirmation of my suspicions, will I move forward against her."

"Regardless of who it is, this poses a major problem," Bruce stated. "Wanda is the only one out of all of us who even knows anything about magic, much less practices it. These Masters of Evil have a magic user of their own, and managed to successfully sideline ours. That puts us at a disadvantage."

"Not to mention they nicked Pietro," Jessica added. "We don't have anyone that can come close to keeping up with him."

The situation grew graver with each passing second. They needed to act decisively from then on to keep from losing anyone else. "What happened to Tony?"

Bruce sighed heavily. "According to Steve, they ran into a pair of Hydra jets. Tony went to intercept the one that was tailing them when his suit just... went dead."

"Went dead?"

He nodded slowly.

"How is such possible? It was my understanding that the arc reactor emitted infinite power."

"That's just it. There's no reason for the suit to have powered down. At least, not on his end."

"You believe it was tampered with?"

"Starktech is notoriously difficult to fuck around with," Clint answered. "I honestly doubt there's anyone in the world other than Tony himself that can crack the suit."

That did little to put Thor's mind at ease.

Minutes passed without another word being spoken. When the lead healer – a surgeon, as they referred to him – emerged from the operating room, everyone looked up at him with expectant expressions. "Ms. Maximoff will survive, though it will be a few days before she wakes up," he started. "She lost about two and a half pints of blood, but her paper work stated that she refuses blood transfusions, so we had to make due with platelets. Her external injuries should heal without much scarring, but her internal injuries are extensive. Her kidneys were lacerate, causing internal bleeding; four ribs were broken, as well as a broken sternum. The sternum caused the broken ribs to partial puncture the left lung, and completely puncture the right lung. She also has a broken nose, fractured orbital bone, and deep contusions around her neck."

Thor was apoplectic. To think that Wanda suffered this much because of Amora's meddling. It was infuriating and disheartening at the same time, but Thor was leaning more toward infuriating. He growled and marched toward the front exit, with the intent of leaving for Asgard right then and there.

The others didn't try to stop him.