A/N: Yes, I know. Don't kill me, it's been a long time. And life has been very...challenging with many problems that arose. Forgive me since it has been months since I updated and thank god I was able to finish this part, but hey, I don't know how you guys will like this chapter, but here we go. I see some of you guys have been seeing a bit of Final Fantasy vibes in there, and I won't deny my love for that game at all. And the last bit of chapter eleven must be confusing for some, but it's actually a glimpse of Aerith's past before she got lost her memory of it.

The Avengers are coming quite soon, so stay tuned for that, but I'm letting the enhanced trio and their doctor finish their time of trouble with HYDRA before they start with a new one.

Thank you for your patience, dear readers. Do not forget to review. And enjoy chapter twelve of When Winter Fell :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Avengers: Age of Ultron, but I do own my OC(s).

The scream echoed in the forest. It bounced off the trees, delivering its tortured hark. There were groans as well from twisting roots, dreading their mistress's pain. It was evident; all could feel the disastrous wake of the terror that hurts her. The earth shook; the rocks combust; the rivers broke; the animals fled. None could stand the sound anymore—the cry for help they could not answer. Their mistress forbade it, but with her commands they knew there was someone who could save her.

In haunted lays, her screams were delivered, around the woods; distorted and faraway. Yet it had done its job, finding them. There was a crash upon the snow-white ground. A huge hunk of rock fell with a scarlet glow. And exhausted breaths can be heard. Pietro done his job, tiring the rock creature out, but the final step was done by his sister.

It was harder than expected to defeat this lump of rock, but at the end, they did, but he was still alive. Pietro stood up straight, catching his breath.

"I thought you never get tired." Wanda commented dryly, looking at her twin's state with a bemused look.

Rolling his shoulders, he looked at her. "I'm sorry to disappoint, dear sister."

The smiled at each other but before anyone could make a move, there was a sound that filtered the area. They both swished around; guards up. There was no one there deemed to be a threat, but the sound came again like a moaning whale. The groans came and branches covered Ulric's body, twisting and turning. The twins watched surprised at the movement. It enveloped him like a spider spinning its web. A hole came and the branches pulled his body into the earth.

Something tugged Wanda's hair and she spun to see a bird chirped on her shoulder. It titled its head as if pointing. Wanda shared a look with Pietro who was just as confused as her. The bird left her should to join a flock of birds gathered on the trees, surrounding them; watching them. They chirped then a scream resounded, making the twins jump back, covering their ears.

"What was that?" Pietro asked, uncovering his ears. His brows furrowed in confusion.

"I don't know."

Wanda looked around the woods worriedly. It wasn't something that she'd hear normally in the forest. It was human for sure, but the place where it comes from—who it comes from troubled her as well as the question of why there were birds around them. Why would they crowd around them? Why would the trees move without—oh no…

"Pietro…" she called out.

Her brother turned to her questioningly.

"Where is Aerith?"

The realization dawned to him. The scream resounded again and this time they knew who it belongs to.

"Where must we go?" Pietro said; his fists clenched with determination.

The birds chirped, getting their attention again. And one by one, they flew into the woods, creating a chain that they would follow.

Pietro turned to Wanda and scooped her up into his arms, and they ran. The redhead explained it once to them about her communication with animals. How she could communicate with them. If they were here now, then something must have happened. And they bet they knew who was hurting her.

Genesis delighted upon her delicious screams as he tore her mind open, searching for the memories he needed. He loved how she struggled against his grip, the burning sensation she must be feeling from the device against her head. The device wasn't supposed to torture her this way. The pain that she should have felt was like a slice of a knife—not the scalding invisible flames, tearing her apart. The maximum power was better than the average. It was faster in gathering the information and more fun to watch.

He turned the device off, pulling it away and letting his target breath. She was slumped on the floor against a tree, pale and weak—vulnerable to his unforgiving touch. His masters had ordered him to get the information needed and afterwards…he could do with her as he pleased. The thought made him smile, looking down at the beautiful creating in front of him.

Her skin pale and sickly still glowed faintly like the light of dying star. Her red hair silky against her skin as it looked so soft to touch. Her eyes glowing faintly like galaxies were stored within them. How beautiful he found her to be and yet his mission has yet to be done. Not all the information had been transferred.

Genesis powered the device back up again, placing it against her skin. His target whimpered, pushing him away weakly, but he tutted and said, "It will be over soon, my sweet…"

He touched her cheek, caressing it gently, looking into her eyes. So full of fear…he wondered how it would be like to empty it all out. After his mission, after he was done with her, he would release her into the void where she may sleep as she wished. His face was near hers; only inches apart their noses would have touched.

"…And afterwards…" he said breathlessly on the nape of her neck, breathing her scent; brushing his lips against her jawline. Her breath hitched either with fear and dread or something else—it did not matter. His fingers found themselves titling her chin up, forcing her to look into his red, gleaming eyes. His thumb traced her lips, so soft and pink. He wondered how it would taste against his. Her breath was uneven as he could feel her scared beating heart hammer against her chest. His gaze came down to her chest, covered with the fabric of her red wine coat.

He smirked mischievously. And he looked up as Aerith stared at him with fear, her eyes begging him not to. His hands drifted down to the top buttons of her coat, hovering over them. Weakly, Aerith lifted her hand to stop him, but he continued unbuttoning them slowly; torturing her. Tears spilled from her eyes as he hungrily took in the sight of her porcelain neck and her collarbone. His fingers traced her collarbone and down to her chest. Genesis looked at her, titling her head upwards, brushing his lips against her neck. She silently cried, her hand on his chest, trying to push him away but it only tightened his resolve. He brushed his lips against her lips.

"…You will be mine…"

"No." Aerith croaked out, holding his wrist.

Genesis looked at her, amused by her resilience. He was strong, and she was weak. There was no harm she could do now. That was what he thought until her grip tightened and his skin felt like it was burning. He looked at her eyes to see it glow a dark combination of blue and violet. Her touch pained him like nothing else before. His wrist slowly turned to violet as he felt a sudden decay in her touch. There were these waves that came out of her, wrapping themselves around his arms. It was doing something to him—something he never felt before.

It didn't register to the grey-skinned mutant until it happened.

The trees groaned and his target stopped and the waves disappeared yet the pain never stopped. He stood up and clutched his violet arm, feeling it burn like it was coated with lava. His arm fell limply on his side, unusable. His veins can be seen and he can feel his blood stop. It was like poison, flowing through his veins. Genesis glared at his target and bared his teeth until something unexpected happened.

Genesis landed roughly on the ground with Ulric's heavy body on top of him. Dirt covered him as it fell from the oaf's body. He groaned and opened one eye find a flock of birds flying to the sky as it exited from the trees. There was a silver blur and he saw a girl with brown hair carried by a man with silver tainted hair. His memory clicked and he remembered who they were.

Wanda and Pietro, wasn't it?

Pietro placed his sister down and ran towards his target, who was breathing heavily in relief. Genesis watched as the boy embraced her, whispering gently to her. God does that sight stir anger and curiosity in him. And that this situation of it all, he was impressed with what his target did. It was smart that she used the animals and the trees to warn the Maximoffs, knowing they would answer. Genesis knew that the twins were miles away from them—too far to hear her scream, but she projected it through the forest and bide her time with him so the twins can reach and rescue her. She used the animals as the messengers to help the twins find their location, leading them to where they were now.

Life was funny with the way it interrupts the scenes. He was almost there. He shouldn't have bide his time. He should have taken her memories and bid her adieu with a snap of her neck, but no—he was distracted. And now, he was finished in getting what he was ordered to do in the first place. Whatever stoic façade was made had turned into a scowl. If only they didn't interrupt his interrogation, then he wouldn't have gone empty-handed. He clenched his fists, making the leather squeak with its tightness.

The device lay away from him next to his target, still powered by not used. Maybe he could defeat them—catch them off guard—he could finish what he started. What plan that was formulating in his mind was lost with the sound of the device being mashed and burned by his target. His red eyes gleamed with anger, seeing the blacken device being crushed to bits and buried beneath the earth.

Wanda came close to them and with her hands glowing red she lifted him up from the ground. He was lifted as if she had clutched his neck, readying for him to hang by the noose of her red glow. His eyes were trained at the spot where the device was and he cursed to think Ulric had already broken his.

Speaking of Ulric, he made no move in recognition of waking up.

Maybe he was dead. Genesis snorted internally. If he found out that his big oaf of a brother had been defeated by these weak experiments, he'd kill him himself. The brunette seemed murderous by the minute, glaring down at him as he smirked. He knew that she had known what he had done to their pretty little red-haired friend; the pain that was projected through the forest through her screams.

A malicious grin came into place tinted with the insane glee of a madman. If he was to die, why not go down with a smile? The thought made him laugh, albeit internally. Genesis didn't want them to know his true colors yet. It was only getting more fun!

This might be the only time he ever really looked at the brunette. He would be lying if he said that she wasn't pretty. And she was beautiful, her and his target too. It was a shame he had been ordered to kill them—or well at this case be killed by one of them. Like all beautiful things, they were poisonous like the violet waves his target infected him with. If only master had permitted him to keep them, he would have a wonderful time. He could have punished his target. And all the things he could do with their beautiful—

His train of thought stopped as the red glow had tightened around him, choking him. It seemed she may have heard his thoughts. Pretty little thing with so much power inside her, and she doesn't even know it. He smirked through the suffocating pain.

Genesis made a playful disapproving sound before croaking out, "Didn't anyone tell you that reading their minds is rude?"

She stepped forwards, glaring up at him with wrath that could rival that of a god. This was just getting more exciting!

"What did you do to her?" she hissed at him with so much disgust and contempt that it made him smile. Although, it faded as Genesis sighed. He couldn't blame her. He blamed his brother who was now lying face down on the cold snow. That oaf could do nothing right.

"Nothing bad," He answered nonchalantly. And suddenly he coughed feeling the glow tighten.

"You will answer the question or I will destroy your companion." She said as calmly as possible.

The silver-haired man almost laughed as he said, "I do not care for my oaf of a brother. Kill him if you please. You'd be doing me a favor." He managed to release a laugh before he was rudely thrown to a tree hard enough to kill him which, fortunately for him, only knocked him out, but little did he know the poison was spreading faster than he'd like.

Wanda sighed, before she clenched her fists and Ulric's body became no more than dust. She turned around back to where her brother and friend were waiting. Aerith had looked better after a while as she was standing close to Pietro who had his arm around her waist for support. Her head lay upon the crook of his neck, peering up to her with exhaustion present in her eyes.

"Are you alright?" Wanda asked, seeing the top buttons of her coat opened.

Aerith nodded, closing them hastily. Pietro cast Wanda a look. Something happened with Aerith, and they were afraid to think that they suspected right.

"What now?" she asked, bringing their attention to her.

It was a miracle she could still talk with all her screaming. Wanda cringed at the memory. She had only found Pietro then, fighting that rock of a man when Aerith's scream rang through the woods, echoing through the trees. Looking up at her brother, she saw the same emotions that were displayed earlier. It was anger, worry, and, more importantly, fear. There was another emotion that she couldn't place, but the moment Pietro had caught her staring, he would look away.

Pietro huffed. "Isn't it obvious? We continue on."

The redhead tore herself away from Pietro, stumbling backwards. "But we don't have Wang with us!" Aerith reasoned weakly, looking distressed.

Until now, it amazed Wanda how deeply Aerith cared for the scientist. And she knew how much Pietro had taken notice. It only just worried her on how Pietro would react to it.

"Listen, Aerith!" he said calmly, taking a few steps towards her. He gently placed his hand on her shoulders and looked intently in Aerith's eyes. "I don't want to tell you this, but Wang could be dead…or worse captured by HYDRA."

There were conflicting feelings that flickered in her face. And Aerith knew he was right, although had refused to acknowledge it. Wanda did not like that idea of leaving Wang as well. Her fondness over the scientist had expanded through the time they spent and he was always kind and sweet. And the fact that he would risk his life to help them escape was something they could never repay. If only her younger self would see her now. Never had she thought to find a friend in a HYDRA scientist. But as much as she wanted to get Wang back, it could not be done.

Wanda sighed. "Pietro is right." The brunette looked down at the ground. "We need to move forward."

The Maximoffs expected her to shout angrily at them, but all they got was a nod. And soon they before their journey away from the HYDRA base, but it seemed the fates had not been so kind to them. Out of nowhere Pietro was hoisted up into the air inside a net. He released an exclamation of shock as he then settled inside in the net, clearly unable to get out. Before any of the two girls could react, agents had surrounded them aiming their guns right at them.

"Don't move or we will shoot!" a voice shouted from behind the trees.

"You're no match with us." Wanda sneered with her eyes glowing red.

It was obvious enough that even with a legion of HYDRA soldiers they were not match for her. Aerith stood close to where Pietro was, already loosening the rope of the net that hung him aloft. Strucker appeared from out the woods. They were surprised at his appearance that pictured him with a three bloody gashes on his arm, and yet he stood commandingly in front of them. Still, their blood ran cold and Pietro continued to struggle in the net. His powers required running very fast, and right now those powers aren't really helpful.

"You're right," he said, moving towards them. "But something tells me that you won't resist us."

He flicked his wrist and a bloody bundle was thrown towards them. Bruises and cuts painted his body that was now colored blue and purple. His clothes were ripped, showing the lacerations he got from the whips of his captors. He shouted and wept in pain as his face collided with the floor. Slowly, the bloody man lifted his head up and they were all horrified on what they saw. His face was wrecked as his nose bled and was angled in a contouring way. His jaw was broken and swollen from all the punches he got. From all the wounds he got, they knew that face anywhere. It was Wang.

First, they were shocked, then they were sad, and finally they were angry. Pietro clutched the ropes that bound him there tightly as he sat, frozen. Wanda glared at Strucker, her hands closing into a fist as she struggled to keep her powers within. Aerith stared at the bloody body with her eyes glistening with unshed tears and unbidden anger.

"We don't want any more causality, so let us be civil and go back from whence we came." He said this with coldness about him that would have terrified Aerith to the limb…if she had looked.

Never once did she look back at the menacing man. Not once. She dared not meet the eyes of the man who had ordered his puppets to do this treachery. Aerith had opted to look at Wang's broken and frail body in horror and contemplation. She did not know what to say.

We should have never left the base.

All three of them were silent. Seeing their hesitance, Strucker nodded to one soldier and he had stepped on a wound on Wang's shoulder, pressing it hard. Wang released a painful muffled scream. And there were pools of red, forming beneath him.

Aerith flinched at the scream, closing her eyes and looking away, letting the tears fall down. This was never the desired effect. They never wanted this to happen. They wanted to live their lives away from HYDRA's grasps, not to watch as they tortured their friend. With all their powers they had, they could not help their friend.

"Come with us," Strucker coaxed, holding out his hand, motioning for the soldier to stop. "And we shall stop his suffering."

They all knew what that would mean. He would kill him. None of them wanted to move. There was a groan and they looked back to see Wang, weakly crouching on his knees. "Don't…" Wang croaked out.

They watched as he weakly looked up at them. "D-Don't do this for me…"

His eyes were full of fear, but he had no regrets whatsoever. There was no malice or spite. His face was ruined with cuts and bruises; he had a swollen eye that nearly shut. He smiled at them with pride. If he was going to die, let it be for the right reason.

"Wang…" Aerith weakly protested.

"L-Let me die…" he smiled up at them.

Those words hung in the air. They dreaded those words. He wanted them not to go and with that it would cost his life. And what if they go with them, then they would spare him. It was a childish thought, and yet they would rather have HYDRA capture them again than their friend to die for their freedom. Wanda stepped forwards, surrendering. The redhead stumbled, walking forwards to stand next to Wanda, who held her in a comforting hug. There was a snap and Pietro fell into the cold and hard floor, the ropes of the net, falling on him and entangling him. Two soldiers came forward, but stopped when Pietro stood, stalking past them to stand next to the two women he cared most in this world.

Strucker was pleased, commanding the garrison to move out. The three enhanced were forced inside a truck, clapped in chains. They were handled roughly being thrown in the truck, but before Aerith could go inside, she saw two soldiers drag Wang's body with them.

"What are you doing to him?" Aerith demanded, sending a glare at them.

Two soldiers ignored her and put the scientist on his feet. They brought out a rope tying it two his wrists and the other end was tied to the truck.

"We're checking how fast he could run." Strucker replied, making Aerith look up at him in confusion before the realization dawned her like a two-ton boulder was smashed on her head.

Before she could say anything else, she was pushed inside, stumbling back and hitting the truck's metal floor. The redhead looked back to glare at the burly soldier that pushed her inside. It surprised her that she had recognized him. The soldier was burly with a buzzcut haircut hidden underneath his hat. He was one of the guards that used to escort her to the greenhouse. Unlike the other guards, he had shown a bit of gentleness when manhandling her (She gave him a cookie once, she remembered), but now it seemed to have changed. Aerith could not blame him. He had just seen what would happen if they affiliate themselves with Aerith or the three enhance experiments. And no cookie was there to prevent that.

The speedster stormed past her, glaring at the soldier that pushed him inside.

"You do that again," he snarled. "And you'll regret it for the rest of your life."

The fury that burned in his electric blue eyes was frightening so that it revealed the power that was hidden inside his mortal body. Even the soldier sensed that, so he grunted and walked away. Pietro clenched his fists in frustration and in anger, but he did not want to release it…not yet. Instead, he sat at the corner next to where Wanda and Aerith were now seated.

It might be a wonder why three enhanced mutants surrendered before a handful of soldiers. They would have had the powers to kill them with a flick of a wrist. Pietro could have run to grab Wang while Wanda and Aerith did the rest, disposing them all—and maybe even killing Strucker. But they didn't.

Instead, the speedster was caught, carelessly, into a net. Yes, he may be fast, but his powers revolve around running and as far as he knew, you can't run inside a net, hanging from the tree line. Aerith could have released Pietro with ease, but she knew there were electrical bolts strapped in the wire. So, if she cuts the wire, it electrocutes Pietro. Now, Wanda, being the most powerful amongst them, could have done many things, but many of those options have a consequence that could cost the price of the life of any of her dearest friends and family.

Most of all, they knew Strucker wasn't stupid. They knew their fondness for Wang and their commitment to family were stronger than their resolve to be free. Just about any of them would be willing to sacrifice everything to save one another.

The three of them sat inside a metal van, cuffed in chains too tight that their wrists turned pink. All kinds of emotions withered through each mind like a wave on the shore, bringing forth items from the sea. Through sorrow and in doubt, they held each other like the other would fade away. They were huddled in a corner with Pietro in the middle; Wanda at the left and Aerith at the right. His arms were around them, bringing them close to him like an invisible shield and warm cloak.

The redhead had to admit that it was warmer, but a stinging pain in her chest tainted that feeling. Warm tears fell on her cheeks, and she buried her face at the crook of his neck. They were going to die—no...Wang was. Strucker wouldn't kill them for they're still of use to him, but Wang was just a scientist—he's expendable. He could be replaced with just a bullet in the brain. She knew she shouldn't think like this, but the dread of her thoughts was keeping her from being positive.

And it was the truth.

There was no other reason for HYDRA to keep him alive. He was a traitor. And what made Aerith feel ashamed of it is that...she made him one.

This was not the instinctual feeling of guilt of a situation that had nothing to do with you. The thing was she had everything to do with it. If she didn't allow Wang to get close to her, then maybe any of this messed up shit would have never happened. And if that happened, then he wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself for them.

Now, they were haunted by the ragged breaths from outside as well as snide remarks from the people that deserved a beating. Outside, tied to the truck was Wang running like hell with no food or water or even the physical health to do it. He was tired and wounded, and it hurts them to hear him suffer and be tortured. And believe them, when they say they wanted to help—that they wanted to stop this truck and heal their friend, but they couldn't.

With their surrender, they had formed a silent agreement with Strucker. The agreement was to stay docile or Wang dies. And there were no other alternatives to contradict to that. The truck stopped, confusing them. They might had been there already at the ba—

BANG!

A/N: Yup. It's a cliffhanger. Don't kill me. But yeah, suspect the next chapter hopefully by the end of August. It's my examinations this week, so my schedule is pretty filled up but I'll try to sneak WWF in my free time. So, let me know what you think about this chapter with a review or maybe even PM me, either way it's fine.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Do not forget to review! :)