A/N: Ah, hello...I know, I know, I'm sorry! I got really stuck on this chapter and then, obviously, other stuff happened, but I am back and writing!
Thank you to those who reviewed and to those asking for more updates - it's here, it's happening.
So, enjoy!
Nat was true to her word, two months after Karina had last seen her friend, she randomly appeared at the tower, hair back to its usual colour and length, drinking Tony's coffee.
Karina had never heard two grown men scream so high and so loudly before.
Steve and Sam joined them at the tower two weeks after Natasha, Karina and Natasha being the only ones who had any idea where they'd been and what they'd been doing.
Thor magically appeared on the balcony during movie night, announcing his arrival with his usual flash of lightning and crash of thunder.
"Where the hell have you been?" Karina asked, looking at him as he walked in, not bothering to move from where she laid on Bruce's legs.
"Space," Thor replied, looking around at them all. He looked at Karina and smirked. "I like the hair."
"Oh, shut it."
Clint was the last avenger to join them, turning up a month after Natasha looking visibly refreshed if slightly stressed. He dragged Natasha to one side, the two having a quiet conversation that Karina didn't ask about. When they came back over, Natasha looked very happy, almost beaming, and Clint looked slightly smug.
They got their first HYDRA tip off at the beginning of August, someone emailing Pepper anonymously with a detailed list of several bases dotted about Europe. Steve quickly ordered a team meeting, laying out all the files and information they had gathered since April.
Karina was the one to tell them that Loki's sceptre was missing.
Needless to say, Tony had to buy a new painting to cover the two holes in the wall, one from a hammer the other from an arrow.
"So," Tony began, "how many HYDRA rats did go down with S.H.I.E.L.D?"
Karina sighed, trying to remember. They were entering their eighth hour of researching and there were empty Chinese containers scattered about the floor and Karina, Natasha and Tony were lying on the conference table. Karina had no idea whose hoodie and sweatpants she was wearing, but they were comfier than the jeans she'd been wearing.
"Errr, the majority of people in S.H.I.E.L.D, a few bases that we dumped onto the internet." Karina groaned. "I can't remember what else, I was a bit busy trying not to die."
"I know that the bases in England and America have been exposed," Natasha added, flicking through a notebook. "Not sure about Europe as a whole."
"We've got the location of the bases in Africa, Australia and Norway but that's all so far," Tony said. "I've got JARVIS running a search for any sign of HYDRA or Loki's sceptre, but it's going to be a while before we get anything."
"We're tackling the Australian base, aren't we?" Karina asked, turning to look at Natasha.
"Yeah, Clint, Steve and Thor left two days ago. They messaged me yesterday saying they'd just arrived, but I haven't heard anything since." Natasha groaned as she moved her legs. "This is a lot more stressful than I thought it'd be."
"Agreed," Tony muttered, trying, and failing, to sit up. "I need coffee," Tony muttered as he did a very ungraceful roll off the table, turning towards the kitchen and carefully stepping over the boxes of files on the floor on his way. "And a life."
Steve, Clint and Thor came back from Australia a week later, battered, bruised but still alive. They'd managed to take down the HYDRA base whilst also gaining some new information on the other bases around the world.
Natasha, Karina and Tony had all groaned when they saw them walk off the jet with several dozen boxes of files and weapons, all three of them having slept seven hours in the week they'd been gone. The conference room was beginning to turn into room of boxes and empty take out containers. Both Pepper and Happy had decided to stay away from the room, not wanting to ruin the organised piles of paper on the floor – which only made sense to Karina.
As it turned into the third week of research, Karina and Tony were collective told to go outside by the rest of the team, JARVIS locking them out of the conference room until they did so.
Tony immediately went to down to his lab, Bruce grumbling in annoyance and following him down there to make sure he didn't break anything or kill himself, whilst Karina actually listened to her friends and left the tower for the first time in, apparently, a month.
It was only as she stepped out onto the street that she realised she hadn't explored New York since she came back from Asgard. Karina pulled the hood up on her hoodie and merged into the crowd of people on the street, trying to keep her head down and so that she wasn't recognised.
It was still early in the morning and there was a chill in the air, the wind rustling the litter strewn across the floor. The sidewalk was filled with people on their way to work, coffee and phones in hand as the descended the stairs to the subway.
Karina was determined to find a bookshop, needing to buy some books to fill the shelves Tony had built in her room. She stopped by a Starbucks, grabbing a takeaway cup of tea and a croissant, before following the directions her phone gave her to the nearest bookshop.
It wasn't a chain bookshop, more a small independent one that sold old copies of classics like The Great Gatsby or The Sign of Four. Karina had accidentally stumbled across it when she was trying to find a present for Pepper's birthday back in February and never got a chance to go visit it.
She almost missed the shop, the shop front blending in with the houses surrounding it. The bell above the door tinkled as it opened, the smell of books and paper making Karina feel like she was back in Asgard. There wasn't anyone sitting behind the desk, so Karina began wandering the aisles of books, a hand gently caressing the old spines. There were copies of Alice in Wonderland, Macbeth, Lord of the Flies and War and Peace as well as some newer books like Harry Potter.
Karina had no idea what book she wanted. She wasn't even planning on coming here, let alone buying anything. But, since she'd been forced out the tower, Karina thought she might as well tick it off her to – do list.
She stood before a shelf, eyes scanning the spines of the books. One stood out in particular and she pulled it off the shelf, carefully opening the tattered cover and flicking through the pages. It was entitled 'Norse Gods and Goddess, a history' and whilst Karina knew Tony would take the mick out of her for buying it, she wanted to read it. Fact and fiction were two very different things.
Karina walked up to the empty desk, gently setting the book down on the countertop and ringing the bell once. As she waited for someone to appear, Karina looked at the corkboard on the wall to her right, reading through the adverts and flyers. There was a newspaper clipping from the Battle of New York with a grainy picture of Natasha, Karina and Clint fighting off the Chitauri.
"You did a good job," a voice said behind her and Karina swirled around, heart in her throat.
"Jesus," she gasped, staring at the old man behind the counter.
"Sorry," he said, smiling. "Not many people come inside these days." He pulled the book towards him and nodded approvingly at the title. "Doing some family research?"
Karina chuckled. "No, I'm just intrigued. I'm also trying to figure out some…stuff."
The man hummed quietly as he typed the barcode into the ancient till. "Identity crisis?"
Karina froze, halfway to picking up a bookmark from the side table. "Possibly." The man gave her a knowing look and she sighed. "I'm just struggling with being known simply as just a goddess. That's all I was known as on Asgard and, well, I want to be known for more than just that."
"Like the Enchantress?"
Karina groaned. "Don't get me started, Amara's probably having a field day with that."
The man chuckled. "Well, Karina, I think you just need to accept the fact that the Goddess of Fire and Princess of Asgard is a part of you and cannot be separated."
"I know, I just don't want to accept it," Karina said quietly as the man put her book in a small paper bag.
He smiled sympathetically as he handed her the bag. "In time you will."
Karina took the back and smiled back at him. "Thank you…"
"Stan."
"Thank you, Stan." Karina's phone started ringing and she quickly pulled it out and answered it, nodding at Stan as she left.
It was only as she headed back towards the tower that she realised she hadn't paid for the book and when she asked Pepper to mail Stan the money, Pepper told her that she couldn't find him anywhere.
Somehow, between their researching and their constant back and forth from New York to HYDRA bases around the wall, Tony managed to organise a charity gala. It'd been agreed between them all that a united front was needed, especially after the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D and a charity gala was, apparently, just the thing.
They'd shoved all their research and boxes of files in their private rooms, Karina and Natasha suffering the most. The girls kicked Steve out of his room in order to get themselves ready for the gala, the soldier just rolling his eyes and leaving them to it.
Karina sighed fondly as Natasha curled her hair around the curling iron, letting the curl gently fall down over her shoulder.
"What's up?" Natasha asked quietly.
"My mother used to do my hair for me," Karina replied, smiling fondly. "Before every big event she'd give me a ring to wear, usually one of hers. I amassed a collection after a while, and I kept them all in this really nice box that Thor gave me for my birthday."
"I haven't seen you wear any rings," Natasha said frowning.
"They're all on Asgard," Karina replied shrugging. "I keep meaning to buy some, but I've not had the chance." Natasha stood up suddenly and walked out the room. "Where you going?"
"I'll be back," Natasha told her, practically running down the corridor. Karina was pretty sure she heard Sam cursing as Natasha whizzed past him and chuckled as she continued to curl her hair. Natasha re-appeared a moment later holding a small wooden box and almost beaming.
"That is terrifying," Karina informed her, pointing the curling iron at Natasha's face. "Don't ever beam again."
Natasha rolled her eyes and set the box down on the table with a thud. She took the iron off Karina and gestured to the box.
"Is that?" Karina whispered, staring at the box in awe.
"Yep," Natasha replied as she sprayed her hair. "Thor gave it to me the day he got back. It was meant to be given to you tonight as a birthday present but – "
Karina turned in her seat to glare at her friend. "Oh, please tell me we're not celebrating my birthday tonight."
Natasha smirked.
"Oh god no," Karina moaned, head falling onto the table. "It was four months ago."
"And we didn't celebrate."
"Because I was unconscious in hospital after taking down Nazis!"
Natasha gave Karina the look. "So dramatic."
Karina stuck her tongue out. She turned back to the book in front of her, running a hand over the engraved top. There were a few Norse runes incorporated into the design that spelt out her name and in each corner was a symbol representing her family. Slowly, Karina lifted the lid revealing the vast array of rings within.
It was a collection that had been amassed over the years, some from her mother, some her grandmother had had and passed down to her. There were a few that Sif and Fandral had given her on their travels and even one from Hogun. But the most precious one of all was the simple gold band with a delicate emerald nestled between two small rubies.
Karina took it out and put it on her left index finger, running the pad of her thumb over the jewels, a fond smile on her face.
"I'm gonna hug him when I see him," Karina announced, "whether he likes it or not."
Natasha laughed. "I heard that Jane was coming so good luck with that."
There was a knock at the door and Pepper appeared behind the door, smiling at them. "Tony's getting antsy so…"
"Hurry up?" Karina finished, standing up.
Pepper sighed. "Yes, before he breaks something."
Karina chuckled as Pepper hurried off down the corridor, dodging Rhodey as she went. Natasha had chosen her dress, not trusting Karina to pick something. The dress wasn't actually hers, Pepper had bought it and leant it to Karina for the night. It was a simple, dark green dress with a slit up the right side. It had spaghetti straps and a deep – v neckline, the waist synched in by a chunky gold belt.
Natasha threw a necklace at Karina and she caught it, rolling her eyes when she realised it was the ridiculously expensive one Tony had bought her a few weeks ago. She obliged and put it on, letting the purple gem settle on her chest. Somehow, Pepper and Natasha had convinced Karina to wear a pair of gold stilettos, the straps winding themselves around her calves.
Sam and Rhodey had made a bet between themselves as too how long she'd last. One had twenty minutes, the other saying ten.
Karina lasted five minutes.
The gala was in full swing by 10 o'clock that night, people milling about the communal floor of the tower, drinks in hand. The DJ was playing a mix of song styles including some 40's music as well as pop songs from the past few years.
Karina was on her third drink of the night, well aware that Thor had spiked it with his Asgardian mead, when she finally spotted Jane in the crowd. She was chatting to Bruce, Thor standing next to her with a confused but proud expression on his face.
"Jane!" Karina called as she approached. The scientist turned to face her, smiling broadly as Karina enveloped her in a gigantic hug.
"Ria, it's been too long!" Jane exclaimed as the two hugged, rocking side to side.
"Sorry, I was a bit busy," Karina grimaced, pulling away.
"Yeah, taking down Nazis." Jane smirked as Karina took a long drink from her glass, trying not to grimace at the Asgardian alcohol in it.
"Don't remind me," Karina muttered, ignoring the burning in her throat as she swallowed. "I know you spiked this, by the way," she said, pointing at Thor.
"It wasn't my idea," Thor replied, raising his hands up. He wasn't wearing his armour for once. Instead he was wearing a dark blue blazer, black button-down shirt and pants and had braided his hair back – Karina had spent two hours teaching him how to do it – tucking it behind him neatly.
"No?" Karina looked at him, tilting his head. Thor cleared his throat, looking away.
"Steve!" Thor exclaimed and quickly ran off towards the very confused super soldier.
Bruce chuckled. "Do you want a new drink?" He asked, gesturing to the bar.
Karina nodded, sniffing her drink suspiciously. "Please, I wasn't planning on getting drunk tonight." She handed him her spiked drink and Bruce weaved through the crowd towards the bar.
"How have you been?" Jane asked, raising her voice over the music as a particularly bass heavy song came on.
"Eh," Karina shrugged, "research is a pain in the arse." The music got louder and there was cheering over by the disco and Karina rolled her eyes as she spotted Tony and Rhodey in the middle of the crowd.
Bruce suddenly appeared at her elbow and Karina took her new drink off him, thanking him as someone bumped into her.
"Shall we go somewhere quieter?" Bruce suggested, almost yelling. The two women nodded, and they pushed their way through the mass of people and towards the stairs leading up to a quieter part of the communal floor.
Instantly the amount of people thinned out and the music was a dull thud beneath their feet as their settled down in on the sofas dotted about the room. Karina sat down with a huff, grateful she'd taken her shoes off and given them to Natasha.
"Peace," Bruce muttered, closing his eyes and sighing.
Karina laughed. "I know. I wasn't expecting this many people to be here."
"I'll find it amusing if JARVIS finds anything related to HYDRA and we have to abandon them all," Bruce chuckled.
"I've not discovered anything of importance yet, Dr Banner," JARVIS said suddenly making all three of them jump.
Karina looked up at the ceiling and frowned. "What have you found, J?" She turned to her two friends. "We might as well do something useful."
Forty minutes later, the two scientists and the goddess were dotted about the room, laptops and box files surrounding them. Karina was sitting on the floor, head resting on Jane's legs as she read through a digitalised case file from the 40's.
Bruce had brought up a hologram and was examining the weapon designs they'd found in Australia, comparing them to the readings from Loki's sceptre, trying to narrow down their weapons database.
Jane was using her astrophysics knowledge to check for any readings similar to her Bifrost readings that would suggest Loki's sceptre was being used. The two were had very similar patterns and it allowed Jane to narrow down the location of bases likely to have the sceptre.
"What are you doing?" Rhodey asked, standing in the doorway and staring at them.
"Researching," Karina replied, waving at him over the top of the sofa. "We got bored."
"No shit." Rhodey walked over and sat down next Jane, leaning down and looking over Karina's shoulder at the file she was reading. "Is that?"
Karina nodded. "Ahuh."
The file Karina was reading was the original Red Skull file from the 1940's. It was long and incredibly detailed even if some information was blanked out. It contained information on Red Skull, the tesseract, Captain America and the crash of the Valkyrie. The file had been shoved to the bottom of the pile in terms of relevance, but Karina had decided to read it in case it gave them some new insight.
"Hey, Bruce," Karina called, hovering over a certain part of the file. "Is the HYDRA base in the Alps destroyed?"
Bruce paused, frowning. "I don't know," he replied slowly.
"JARVIS?"
"I believe it is in a state of disrepair following its abandonment and attack in 1943 but it is still standing."
"So, it, theoretically, could be a stronghold still?" Karina asked, a plan forming in her head.
"Theoretically, yes."
Jane cleared her throat. "It would make sense with some of the readings I'm getting from the Alps. They're not huge readings but it's enough to suggest the presence of alien tech."
Karina looked between Bruce and Rhodey, eyes wide. She suddenly stood up, grabbing Rhodey's hand and hauling him off the sofa.
"Where are you going?" Jane yelled as Karina ran out the room, Rhodey falling behind.
"To find Tony!" Karina yelled back. She ran down the stairs, cursing her dress the entire way, and barged through the crowd of people, grateful for Rhodey yelling at everyone to move out the way.
Karina let out an oomph as she ran straight into someone. Rhodey managed to stop her from falling onto her butt as she stared up at a very confused Tony and Steve.
"Why are you two yelling at my guests?" Tony asked, frowning.
"We've got a lead," Karina said breathlessly. "HYDRA base in the Alps, where the Red Skull was back in the 40's has readings matching those of Loki's sceptre and Chitauri weapons."
Steve's eyes widened slightly at the mention of the old base where his life had changed forever, but his Captain stance quickly took over. He looked to Tony who nodded.
Not wanting to panic anyone, Tony and Steve quickly ran around, telling the fellow Avengers what was happening as Pepper continued the party, quickly extinguishing any panic an guests were having.
Karina ran down to the armoury and Natasha quickly caught up with her, grabbing her wrist as the two walked towards their respective lockers.
"What is it?" Natasha asked, stopping in front of her locker as Karina opened hers.
"A hunch," Karina replied as she slipped out of her dress, abandoning it in a puddle on the floor. "If Jane's calculations are right and the files are correct, this could be a big one."
Natasha glanced over at Karina as she shimmied her way into her suit. "How big?"
"Big," Karina replied as she sheathed her sword.
In the five minutes it took them to get changed, Steve had taken control and was explaining the limited amount he knew to the others assembled on the quinjet. Bruce and Jane had stayed behind to keep an eye on the readings and help out the analysts run point. Sam, Rhodey, Tony, Steve, Thor and Clint we're all onboard, most of them struggling to suit up in the cramped space.
Karina and Natasha walked on to the jet; the goddess immediately being dragged into the mission briefing by Steve as she passed him.
"Ri, what is going on?" Clint asked grumpily as he put on his ear comm.
"I was reading this old file from the 40's about the Red Skull and HYDRA," she began as Natasha closed the ramp of the jet and expertly piloted it off the launchpad and into the sky over New York, "and began wondering if their old base in the Alps was still intact."
"Which it is," JARVIS chimed in, showing them an image of the front of the base hidden in the mountains.
"Then Jane said that she'd detected readings matching those of the sceptre and the Chitauri's weapons around that area. Those readings are so unique, I don't see what else it could be." Karina looked around at them all, most of them wearing a mix of their party clothes and their suits.
"I did a search through the local news channels in that area and there have been reports of unusual activity around the base, loud explosions and gun shots," JARVIS added, showing them the news articles and videos.
"So, it's more than likely that it is HYDRA," Steve finished.
Karina nodded. "And they are likely to have some seriously high – tech weapons and defences."
"So, we're screwed," Rhodey said bluntly.
"No, no," Karina said, shaking her head, "more, mildly inconvenience."
Sam snorted and Karina winked at him as Steve let out a long – suffering sigh.
"We've got a ten-hour flight ahead," Steve said, giving Karina a glare as she giggled, "see what else you can find."
Karina groaned, throwing her head back against Thor's leg as she opened yet another file. They'd all been going through any and all files related to the HYDRA base in the Alps and their new weapons for at least five hours now and Karina's brain hurt. Thor absently patted her on the head as he swiped through his own file and Karina reached up a hand, grabbing his as she turned her attention back to the file.
Natasha was lying across Karina's legs, eyes scanning something on the tablet in her hands whilst Clint and Sam were busy analysing the blueprints for the new weapons they'd stolen from the base in Australia.
Steve, Tony and Rhodey were sitting quietly in the cockpit of the jet. Rhodey was piloting the jet, occasionally chipping into Tony and Steve's conversation as they started to plan their attack. Pepper had called them an hour ago, explaining that she'd managed to evict the remaining guests from the tower and sent out a statement classifying their sudden assembly that night as 'Avengers business'.
"So, you raided the base but didn't blow it to kingdom come?" Sam asked after a while, directing his question at Steve.
"I was a bit busy trying to fight the Red Skull and stop the Valkyrie from exploding," Steve replied, turning his chair around to look at Sam and giving him a look that was almost a glare.
"From what I've read," Natasha said, tilting her head back to look at Steve, "it was abandoned after the SSR stormed it and no one thought to shut it down properly as the country was – and I quote – 'mourning the loss of Captain America'. "
Steve sighed, purposefully ignoring Karina's snigger. "Yeah, I know."
"HYDRA probably thought it would be a safe space to lay low after the Triskelion incident," Tony said, flicking through a file. "Old, apparently haunted. No one's gonna go to a graveyard base."
"Except us," Steve finished.
"Except us," Natasha echoed quietly.
"We're fucking crazy," Karina muttered and there was a ripple of laughter, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen over the jet.
The jet said that the outside temperature was -3 degrees as they landed a few miles away from the entrance to the base. Karina shivered as a blast of cold air hit her as the ramp lowered and she buried herself in her suit, pulling her hood up and sleeves down across her hands.
Tony quickly shot off into the sky, Rhodey, Sam and Thor following him. They were to lead the aerial attack, scouting out the base for any sign of attack from the soldiers within. Meanwhile the rest of them had to walk two miles to the back entrance of the base, much to Clint's chagrin.
Karina kept to the back of the group, eyes constantly scanning around her as she walked. It all seemed too perfect. The readings appearing at the exact moment they were looking for them, a base that they'd all ignored due to it being a relic from a war…
She didn't voice any of her concerns, however, content to trek through the snow, stepping in Steve's footprints so she didn't fall over. The wind had picked up, churning the snow around them, the wind stinging Karina's face. She pulled her suit closer around her, holding onto her hood as they base appeared through the haze of snow, Tony hovering just in front of them.
"We all ready?" Tony asked, glancing down at his teammates as they forced themselves to unwrap their coats and draw their weapons. Karina unsheathed her sword, gripping the cold metal tightly as Steve nodded.
"Anything happens, meet back at the jet," Steve ordered, looking at them all for confirmation that they'd heard him.
"Whenever you're ready, Tony," Rhodey said. Rhodey's words acted as the go sign for everyone as Tony took off towards the base, firing at the walls as soldier's came out, their weapons primed and aimed at the aerial assault. Thor followed after, giving his sister a nod as he took off – their way of wishing each other good luck.
"Karina, Nat," Steve pointed at a door in the wall, "that's a back entrance to the corridor that leads to the records room. We'll cover you."
The two women nodded as they ran towards the door, Karina throwing up a shield as one HYDRA agent spotted them, firing lasers at them. Karina threw him off the wall and into a tree, not sparing him a second thought as they burst through the doors and into the corridor, slamming the door shut behind them and barricading it with a chair.
"If we split up," Natasha said as she jumped down the stairs, "we can cover more ground. Keep your comms on."
"Roger," Karina nodded, turning right as Natasha turned left.
There was a feeling of unease in her stomach as Karina quietly walked through the halls of the base. She could distinctly hear explosions up above as the rest of the team took down the HYDRA agents charging towards them. Steve, despite not being here for over 70 years, still had a rough idea of the blueprint of the base and was giving Natasha rough directions to the records room.
"I'm almost at the records room, Ria," Natasha said, her voice clear over the comms despite how far underground they were.
"Roger, I'm approaching the south – west corner, I'll be with you in five minutes," Karina replied, clearing a room to her left. She had a tight grip on her sword, the metal giving off a purple glint in the hash light of the base. Karina turned the corner, spotting the sign for the records room, and she sped up slightly, determined to get to her goal.
Suddenly, a high – pitched ringing noise overcame Karina's ears and she winced, covering her ears whilst also trying not to stab herself in the face.
"Miss Odinsdottir."
A voice with a German accent spoke behind her and Karina slowly turned around, struggling to stay on her feet as the ringing got higher. A man, wearing a white lab coat, stood in the middle of the corridor, hands in his pockets, smirking at her. There were at least twenty soldiers behind him, their guns aimed at Karina as she struggled to stay standing.
Karina dropped her right hand from her ear, raising her sword into the air, hands shaking.
"Who are you?" Karina growled, her voice cracking slightly as her brain started pounding against her skull.
"I am Dr List," the man said. "We were expecting you, Fraulein. See, those readings, the weapons…we planted them to bring you here."
Karina frowned. "What do you mean?"
List chuckled. "We want you for a little project of ours. Experiment is perhaps a better word for it."
Karina took a small step forward. "You're even madder than I thought if you think I'm coming willingly." Karina raised her sword higher, her magic practically crackling through the air.
List smirked as the soldier's cocked their guns, Karina walking towards them, eyes bright purple. He pulled a hand from his pocket, a black box within his grasp as Karina intercepted the first agent. Slowly, he turned the dial around until it wouldn't go any further.
Karina stumbled to a halt, unable to breathe for the pain in her head. She fell to her knees, sword falling to the floor as blood dripped down from her nose.
"Karina, what's happening?" Steve's voice came through the comms as Karina cried out in pain, two soldier's walking over and kicking her knees out from under her. One soldier stabbed something into her neck and Karina went limp in their arms, allowing herself to be dragged down the corridor.
Natasha burst through the door at the opposite end of the corridor, catching only a glimpse of Karina's body being dragged away. She quickly fired at the soldier's, bullets flying off the walls but none hitting their intended target. Feeling slightly sick, Natasha ran forward, stumbling to a halt next to Karina's abandoned sword. Karina' rings had fallen off her finger and Natasha slowly picked it up, thumb rubbing over the gold band.
She swallowed, trying to keep her emotions at bay as she pressed her ear comm. "Karina's been taken."
"What do you mean 'taken'?" Thor growled and Natasha suddenly realised that it was her who was going to break the news to the god.
"HYDRA got her," Natasha whispered as she crouched down, hand hovering over her friend's sword.
There was a roar of anger at the other end of the comms and the entire base shook, a loud rumble of thunder from above reaching her twenty feet below the ground. The lights flickered and Natasha clenched her fists as an influx of voices on the comms overwhelmed her, asking when, where, how.
Natasha, for once, had no answer.
"How could you let this happen?" Thor growled, taking a step closer to Natasha.
Steve had met Natasha in the corridor and had looked for Karina, but whoever had taken her had escaped through the underground railway system that had been set up in the war. They'd managed to take the base, however, arresting twenty soldiers – all of whom Tony had sent back to New York to be interrogated.
"Hey, back off," Clint snapped, pushing Thor back. "It's not her fault."
Natasha said nothing. She gently fiddled with Karina's ring, spinning it around her finger. She had no answer. She had no solution.
"They used the Silencer," Tony said softly. "JARVIS found blueprints for an enhanced version. They planned this. The readings, the lack of defence. They wanted us to come here."
Thor growled, storming into the corner of the quinjet, anger radiating off him. A storm had suddenly formed as they flew home and they all knew it was down to Thor's anger, lightning flashing all around them.
Steve had called Maria, telling her the news, and she'd immediately set about looking for any sign of Karina, sending Stark Industries personnel to all known HYDRA bases and safehouses.
But still no sign.
"I'm sorry," Natasha said quietly, but everyone heard her.
"It's not your fault, Tash," Clint told her gently, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
Deep down, Natasha knew that it wasn't. But that didn't stop the guilt festering inside her as the storm rocked the jet, Clint's arm tightening slightly around his friend. She'd lost one of her closest friends – perhaps someone who could be more than friend – and she had no idea what to do.
Darkness surrounded her. It wasn't the comforting darkness of sleep but the unnerving darkness of awakening somewhere new.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, wincing at the light hitting them. She was lying down, looking up at a concrete ceiling with cracks through it. Karina turned her head and saw that there were restraints around both her wrists and, upon lifting her head up, they were on her ankles too. Someone had taken her out of her suit and put her in a dirty, grey hospital gown.
Karina groaned, her head pounding. She could almost feel the bruises littering her body and suddenly, she remembered.
HYDRA.
Nat.
The Silencer.
She tugged on the restraints, but they were tied tightly, almost cutting the circulation off. Karina felt something tug on her arm and turned her head again, following the IV line up to a bag above her, feeding her a concoction that no doubt would try to kill her.
"She awakens!" A voice exclaimed and Karina lifted her head. The man from earlier, Dr List, was standing in front of the door, staring down at her, his face formed into a sneer.
"Let me go," Karina growled, pulling on the restraints, the stand the IV was on rocking at her action.
List chuckled as he walked forward. "That's not going to happen, my child. We've been waiting an awfully long time for this. Even before New Mexico, believe it or not.
He snapped his fingers and the doors burst open as five soldiers marched in followed by three nurses and two other doctors. Karina eyed them all with disdain as they walked up to her and surrounded the metal table she was tied to. Two of the soldiers were carrying a black case and the set it down on the counter behind them, flipping open the latch, and lifting open the latch.
Karina would recognise that weapon anywhere.
And as the soldiers lifted her brother's sceptre out of the case, carefully handing it over to Dr List, Karina felt true panic set in as her futile attempt at freeing herself increased. She knew what that sceptre was capable off, knew it's true power.
She wasn't an idiot.
She may be an Asgardian, but the sceptre was capable of immense power, capable of changing anyone's DNA – human or not. Her brother was still hurting her from the afterlife. If the situation wasn't so serious, she would've laughed.
List smiled at Karina as he lowered the tip of the sceptre so that is hovered just above her chest. Karina could hear the stone thrumming with power as two soldiers' tightened the restraints, another pulling one over her head and buckling it down.
"Now, we would sedate you," List said, as the soldier's held Karina down, not trusting the restraints, "but we've found that, on the ones who survived this, being awake really does help."
Karina grunted, tugging on the leather straps as the sceptre was lowered onto her chest, the tip piercing through the thin material and onto her skin. Instantly, her skin felt like it was on fire. Every fibre of her body was burning as the sceptre's power was thrusted inside of her. She could taste blood inside her mouth as the pain continued to rip through her entire being. Her body convulsed on the table, the restraints only just keeping her from falling to the floor.
Then it stopped.
No smouldering or smoke. It just stopped.
Slowly, the soldier's released Karina as she panted, barely conscious. They stepped away, allowing the doctors and nurses to check her vitals, prodding her with needles as she laid there.
"Vitals' are looking good, sir," one doctor said, handing List his clipboard. "The true test will be if she makes it through the night."
List hummed, waving the doctor away. "And the memory machine?"
"Still being fixed up after the Winter Soldier destroyed the last one, sir," a soldier supplied. "Should be ready by the time she awakens."
"Good." List handed the clipboard back to the doctor and turned to leave. "Lock her with the twins. They'll enjoy having something to play with."
Line break
Pietro Maximoff looked up as a door slammed open and four agents walked in, dragging a body between them. Wanda looked up briefly, quickly losing interest, but Pietro's curiosity forced him to stand up and walk to his cell door, watching as the agents threw the body into the cell next to his, not caring that the body fell to the floor with a thud, it's head hitting the concrete with some force.
"She's yours to play with," the soldier said in broken Sokovian, gesturing to the lifeless body on the floor. "Just try and keep her alive, Maximoff."
Wanda scoffed from where she sat on the bed, watching the soldier visibly gulp. "No promises."
"Wanda," Pietro scolded, his tone teasing as he glanced back at his sister.
"She's going under the memory machine when she wakes," the soldier told them, a grimace on his face.
"If she wakes," the other soldier muttered, walking out the room, leaving the other soldier to slam the door behind him.
Wanda turned back to the wooden blocks in front of her, not sparing the girl in the cell next to Pietro's a second glance. Pietro watched the girl for a moment before he too turned back to what he was doing before she arrived.
Karina slowly began to open her eyes, wincing and closing them again at the harsh light above her. Her head was pounding, her entire body was cold and aching. She lifted her head slightly, only to let it fall again.
"Sir," a voice called, "she's awake."
She went to lift her head again, wanting to know who the voice belonged to, but it didn't move.
"Good," a different, colder, voice replied, "bring her through."
There was a mechanical hiss, and something slid open. Karina felt someone grab her under her arms, someone else grabbing her feet, and lift her onto something that was even colder than where she'd been before.
The thing she laid on, she assumed it was a trolley, was pushed out the room, jolting as it hit a bump in the floor. Through her closed eyes, Karina felt the lights pass above her, the brightness hurting her head before it faded only to come back a second later. There were thousands of sounds around her. She recognised none.
She felt the trolley hit a door, it jolting her slightly as it was swung open. The trolley stopped, rocking back and forth slightly. Someone slid her across from one trolley to another, but this one was slightly softer.
Karina moaned, turning her head as her head pounded, the constant jostling of her body making it worse.
"Miss Odinsdottir," a voice, the one that'd been called 'sir' before, said, "are you with us?"
Karina forced her eyes to open, groaning at the light. Someone was strapping a restraint over her stomach and legs and her arms had been stretched out to the sides, each on restrained.
"There she is," the man said and, as her eyes focused, Karina saw he was smirking. "Welcome."
She feebly tugged against the restraints, her body to groggy and heavy to give it her full strength.
"There's no need to be scared, my child," Strucker said softly from where he stood at the foot of the table. "It hurts but soon you'll forget pain. You'll forget everything except what we tell you."
Karina frowned slightly but looked up, her heart stopping when she saw the machine hovering above her. She shook her head, "no, no, no." She repeated it over and over again like a mantra until a nurse shoved a rubber mouth guard into her mouth. Behind her, someone pulled a restraint over her head, holding it down as the machine above her slowly descended, the metal plates resting on her face, biting into her skin.
"Begin," Strucker ordered, nodding to someone next to the machine. Karina could barely breathe, panic taking over all her senses, her chest clenching tightly as the machine began whirring, getting faster and faster.
Then, the electricity hit her.
The screams of someone not wanting to forget.
Yet, forget she did.
Strucker watched carefully as the metal plates retracted, revealing the tear-stained face underneath it. The bed tilted upwards and a nurse took off the head restraint, allowing her free movement again. He took a curious step forward as her eyes blearily opened, blinking slowly as the world came into focus again.
"Do you know your name?" List asked, reading the pre-agreed questions off a clipboard in his hands.
She hesitated. Blinked. "No."
List nodded. "Do you know where you are?"
Blinked. "No."
Strucker and List shared a smug look as Karina frowned slightly, trying to remember.
"My child," Strucker said, stepping forward, "can you show me your power?"
Karina blinked, thinking for a moment. A purple glow engulfed her hands and her eyes turned dark purple.
List nodded. "Nickels appears to have succeeded."
"Well done, Doctor," Strucker said, nodding. "She's going to make an excellent addition." He took a step closer to Karina, stroking her cheek. "She's going to tear them apart."