Groaning, Daisy slowly opened her eyes, everything around her was blurry. Last thing she remembered was laying down in Melina's house waiting for her girlfriend.
Glancing about, she could see that they were loaded on a plane that felt like it was going up. Turning her head to look for her sister and girlfriend, she only found one.
Natasha lay on the floor a few feet away back to back with Yelena, their hands tied together. Neither of them were moving, but Daisy knew that the Red Room wasn't going to kill two of their best agents. Behind the two sisters was Alexei, still dressed in his Red Guardian outfit. She could see about twenty darts sticking out of the mans chest.
Daisy couldn't see where Karley was though, the panic setting in as she took in the rest of the plane.
There were multiple Widows around her but the biggest threat was the man in the suit, Taskmaster Yelena had called him. Dreykovs newest project. Daisy knew that the man was a mimic who could copy their every move but he didn't have powers, now did he?
Focusing on the vibrations around the plane she could sense that her sister wasn't here, but there was something strange.
The vibrations coming from Natasha's body were different, unfamiliar. Having spent months with the redhead, she could easily tell that the girl with the face of her girlfriend most certainly was not her.
Before she could think more on the subject or break the heavy metal cuffs around her wrist a needle was roughly shoved into her neck, everything going dark once again.
"It's so nice to see you again, Surge," a man greeted, walking up the ramp of the plane Karley was chained in.
She had seen him before, when she first started working for the Red Dawn. One of her first missions was under him, but she never knew that his name was Dreykov.
As he approached Karley, chained up to the wall, he reached his hand out, caressing her cheek. She pulled away as best she could but she had nowhere to go.
Except one place.
Focusing on her connection to the astral plain to get away from Dreykov, the brunette was confused when she couldn't feel it there anymore.
Dreykov laughed, knowing exactly what she was trying to do.
"Now that's not very nice, Karley," he whispered, finally pulling his hand away. "You'll find that it'll be hard to hurt me my dear, but don't worry. I know you haven't had your usual dose of medicine lately. We'll fix that for you."
He gestured to a few woman behind him as they came up to the brunette and locked two bracelets onto her wrists. Very familiar bracelets. They were the ones that Tony made all those months ago, slightly altered though. Having just put them on her wrist, Karley was even more confused why she couldn't project to the astral plain.
"How are you doing this?" She asked, shooting daggers at the fat man as he walked away. The Widows unchained her and dragged her along behind him.
"Don't worry about it, my dear. You'll be a nice collection to my Widows seeing as Mrs. Frederic couldn't keep ahold of you."
"Actually, I'm still working for her," Karley admitted, knowing that this man was on her side as well. Dreykov stopped in his tracks and turned to face the girl.
"Is that so?" He asked in thought. "So you wouldn't mind if I called her up to confirm this?"
"It's not like I have a choice, you'll do what you want anyways," she snarled. "But call her up, she'll confirm my undying cooperation with the Red Dawn. They left me with the Avengers to be their spy."
"Very well," he said, continuing down the hall.
It didn't take them long to throw Karley in a cell by herself, her cuffs still on.
As much as she hated this, admitting to Dreykov that she was still with the Red Dawn, she didn't have a choice. Besides, she was of no use inside a cell.
Natasha watched as Daisy, Yelena, Alexei, and Melina, who was disguised as the redhead were dragged off the plane.
Walking with confidence dressed as Melina, she walked towards Dreykovs office.
This was it. It was time to take down the Red Room.
Walking into his office she could see the man sitting down on his couch, his eyes immediately going to her.
"My god," he said standing up. "Look at you. So, uh, how was the family reunion?"
"It was awful," Natasha lied. "They were clingy, and too emotional, and needy."
Dreykov laughed, stopping to stand in front of her.
"Just like old times, huh? Yelena Belova. What's the deal with her?" He asked, his face so close she could smell the whiskey on his breath. "She was the only one infected, right?"
"As far as I know, yes," she answered, glancing over his shoulder to see Taskmaster standing there watching them with a careful eye.
"These gasses and antidotes, they're a pain in my ass. You need to get it sorted."
"I have nine pigs that will need attending to in my absence," she told the man. He rolled his eyes before leading her to a chair, pushing her down and holding her head from behind her.
"I don't give a shit about your pigs." Natasha winced a bit as he tugged on her hair. "Cut her brain out. Hmm? Identify the weakness."
"What about Romanoff and the Johnson sisters?" She asked as he sat on his desk.
"Romanoff is a traitor. She turned her back on her people. On her blood. She had nothing. I gave her a home," he leaned in, placing his arms on either side of the chair. "I gave her love. I want you to put that drug in her. Same goes for the older sister. Imagine what I could do with not one, but two Avengers under my control? As for Karley, well," he laughed. "You don't need to worry about her. She's still with us. Mrs. Frederic already placed her on the Avengers as a spy without my knowing."
Natasha tried her best to keep her mask up at this news. Just how long had the Red Dawn still have control of her?
"Wouldn't you like to speak to Romanoff first?"
"When you look into the eyes of the child you have raised, no mask in the world can hide that," Dreykov whispered, his hand reached for Natasha's face. Instinctively she caught it before it could touch her, but knowing that her act was up, she let his hand go and allowed him to continue as he pulled her wig and mask off, revealing her long braided red hair. "Welcome home."
Standing up to face the man after so many years, Natasha heard Taskmaster draw his gun from it's holster, pointing it at her. Dreykov instantly threw his hand up, letting the man know not to shoot her.
"Now, now, don't go breaking my new toy," he warned. Taskmaster obeyed, holstering his pistol once more.
Daisy woke up once more, groaning at the pounding headache she had. Looking around she could see that she was in a cell with thick bullet proof doors. Across from her was the redhead she knew wasn't her girlfriend.
"What the hell happened?" She called out to the not Natasha, ignoring Alexei who was bearing his soul to the girl. Daisy smiled at that, knowing that it was actually Melina. It had to have been.
Melina was pulling a panel off from the inside of her cell, sparking some wires together.
"It's all part of the plan, Daisy. Give me just a moment..." she trailed off, jumping up when her cell opened. She unlocked Alexei's cell next, the man falling forward before looking to who he thought was Natasha in confusion.
"What? How did you do that?" He asked, helmet in his hand.
"I designed these cells myself," the redhead stated, before reaching up and pulling her mask and wig off to reveal Melina. Daisy knew she was right.
"Can someone let me out?" Daisy called to the two, Melina quickly unlocking her cell. "Where's my sister?"
Melina sighed, knowing that it was better to rip the band-aid off.
"I had my suspicions when I met Karley at my house, but she's still working for the Red Dawn, which is ultimately the Red Room as well," the older woman explained, watching as Daisy's jaw hung open.
There was no way her little sister was still working for them. All these months that she's been living with Daisy, and she hadn't noticed anything wrong other than the occasional late night or two. Granted, she hadn't known her sister for very long, so she didn't know what was unusual for the girl, but she would've known if she were still working for the enemy.
"There's no way," Daisy voiced her thoughts. "If she's still working for them then we have a way bigger problem - how do we get her back on our side?"
"You're going to have to get her the Widow cure," Melina said, touching her earpiece. "Yelena, it's me. It's mama. You have a two-inch blade concealed in your beltline. Outside right hip."
"If you're here, then where's my girlfriend?" Daisy asked the woman once she was off her comms.
"She's going after Dreykov. This was all her plan, she didn't tell you because she knew you'd try and stop her," Melina said with a frown. "She said to trust her."
Daisy groaned. This was the worst plan her girlfriend had ever come up with, and she was a bit hurt that she didn't include her in the loop. That was a problem for another time, however, as they had much bigger problems.
"Yelena is going after the antidote," Melina told the two before turning to Daisy. "She could use some help."
"No," Daisy replied. "I'm going after my sister and Natasha. How do I get there?" She asked, knowing that Yelena could manage grabbing the vials. Seeing Melina about to argue, she quickly continued. "If my sister is working for Dreykov, then Natasha stands no chance against her. I can handle my sister, but you need to tell me where they're at."
"Okay," Melina agreed, knowing that she was right. "Listen closely, this place is easy to get lost in."
"Is this you plan?" Dreykov asked, tablet in hand as he watched Melina trying to hack into the system.
"My plan is to kill you," Natasha answered coldly.
"I'm alive," the man said. "So what do we do now?"
"What was my mothers name?" The redhead asked. Dreykov looked away in thought.
"Ah. The place where we buried her, there was a tree. A pink blossom, beautiful. And there was a tombstone with her name engraved on it. What was her name," he trailed off, chuckling. "Ah. Un-known," he growled, tired of this.
Natasha shook her head in disgust. "You don't feel anything? Did you feel anything when I killed your daughter?" She challenged.
Dreykov ignored that jab, knowing what she was trying to do.
"This is your haunted past?" He asked instead, gesturing to the redhead laughing. "Really?" Natasha blinked in confusion at this reaction, not getting what she had hoped for as she clenched her jaw. "Thank you, Natasha," he stood up, walking to Taskmaster who was standing there watching them. "You gave me my greatest gift," he said, patting the man in the suit, snaking his way behind him. "Say hello."
Natasha watched as Taskmaster opened a small panel inside of his arm, pushing a few buttons as his helmet opened. Except it wasn't a him. It was a girl, half of her face covered in scars, starring daggers towards the redhead.
"When your bomb exploded all those years ago," Dreykov continued, making his way to his desk. "It nearly killed my Antonia." The two woman took a few steps toward each other, Natasha facing her past that has haunted her every night for years. "I had to put a chip in the back of her neck. Look at her," Dreykov growled. "You find it difficult to look at her? I do. She - she watches everything and she can do it. She's the perfect mimic," he walked behind Natasha, whispering the last part in her ear. "And she fights like all of your friends."
As the two woman continued staring at each other, Natasha couldn't help the guilt that was eating away at her. She had done this to this little girl, had turned her into this monster, this thing.
"Can she hear me?"
"Why? So you can make her feel better after you blew her face off?" He spit into her ear. "Enough of all this bullshit," he turned to his daughter. "I have rats in the basement, go."
Antonia nodded her head, slipping her helmet back on and marching out of the room. As soon as the girl was out of sight, Natasha whipped her pistol out of her holster, aiming it at Dreykov who seemed unfazed as he sat on his desk once more.
"Well that was a mistake," she said, gun trained on him.
"Was it?" Dreykov asked calmly.
"You just sent away the one thing that would stop me from killing you," she stated, knowing that it wasn't true, but playing her act perfectly. Dreykov just nodded.
"Try, then," he challenged, knowing he was safe. "Do it." Natasha tried as hard as she could to pull the trigger, grunting in frustration when her finger wouldn't follow through with it. "Is the safety on?" He questioned, easily reaching out and grabbing the pistol aimed in his face from her. He checked the safety. "No." Aiming the gun to the ceiling he fired a shot, showing her that it wasn't the guns fault. He pointed to the blade on her thigh. "Try your knife." Natasha stabbed towards the man, the blade stopping a foot away from him. "Ah," Dreykov said with a smile, grabbing the knife from her hands and dropping it on the ground. "You're in trouble."
"How are you controlling me?" The redhead asked, confusion written on her face as he released her arm.
"The same way that I can control her," Natasha watched as he pressed a button on his watch, already knowing who was coming in the doors before they even opened. A moment later, Karley walked in, but she wasn't in her jeans and t-shirt she was when they were taken. No, now she was in a slick black widows suit, her hair pulled back into its usual ponytail. Her face was covered by her Surge mask, the same one she used when she was with the Red Dawn.
"Karley," Natasha whispered to the girl.
"Natasha," the girl answered, walking to stand next to Dreykov. They had finally removed her bracelets after confirming with Mrs. Frederic that she was still working for her. That didn't stop them from injecting her with the poisonous red liquid though, to make sure she wasn't breaking free from their control.
She was thankful they hadn't wiped her memory.
"I'm not controlling you, Natasha. Well not yet," he said. Natasha looked to her hands. "But there is a pheromonal lock. Smelling my phermones prevents you from committing violence against me." In a split second he raised his hand and went to backhand her, stopping an inch away from her face as she flinched away in fear.
Seeing this happen, Karley clenched her fists in anger, wanting nothing more than to kill this man. But she stood there and watched, until Dreykov told her otherwise.
"I'm very upset with Melina," Dreykov sighed, turning his back on the redhead and walking to his chair. "It's a shame I'll have to kill her. It's funny that you think that your plan would've worked. Having Melina land the Red Room so you could hand me over to authorities?" He tapped a few buttons on his tablet, effectively locking Melina out of their systems.
"So, what now, you're going to fold me into your pathetic little puppeteer act?" The redhead asked, continuing with her plan.
"Pathetic, huh?" Dreykov scoffed from his chair. "You would call Karley pathetic? With one command I to her I could have you dead. I wouldn't call that pathetic."
"Yeah, what would you call it?" She walked up to his desk, waiting for an answer.
"I would call it-" She cut him off.
"When was the last time you had a conversation with someone who wasn't forced to talk to you?" She baited him.
Karley watched in confusion as Natasha obviously was trying to rile the man, knowing very well he had control over her.
"You ran away to fight in the wrong war," Dreykov answered, getting annoyed with her. "The real war was fought here, in the shadows."
"You didn't fight in the shadows," she shook her head. "You hid in the dark."
"Real power comes from undetectable influence. Take your friend for example," he gestured to Karley who was standing there, watching. "You had no idea that she was even working for us."
"If no ones noticed then why even do it?" She slammed her hands on the desk, leaning closer. "You're nothing. You have nothing."
"There are 50 people on this planet -" Natasha scoffed, cutting him off once more.
"Oh, stop it."
"Don't tell me to stop!" Dreykov shouted, spit flying out of his mouth as he jumped up, his chair falling behind him. Karley watched in horror, knowing what was going to happen if Natasha continued.
"If I don't tell you when to stop, then how will you know when to shut up?" She challenged, knowing that he was at his breaking point. She watched as his fist wound up and punched her across the cheek, the redhead stumbling a few feet back. "Come on. Think I can take a punch?" She held her hands out, inviting him to unleash his anger. He walked around the table, anger radiating off of him as he punched her in the face again, this time the redhead stumbling into Karley's arms as the inhuman held her there. "God damn it, you're weak," she prodded at his ego again, not struggling as she was held.
"Weak?" Dreykov asked with a laugh.
"I bet it's easier to be tough in front of defenseless little girls, huh?"
"That's enough!" Dreykov shouted, lunging forward and hitting her in the nose this time. Natasha took the hit, her head snapping to the side as blood dripped down her nose. Karley kicked the redheads legs out from under her, forcing her down onto her knees as the man approached.
Seeing that Karley had Natasha on the ground, hands pinned behind her back Dreykov nodded to the girl as he went to sit back down, breathing heavily.
Karley knew what he wanted, unable to stop herself as she let go of Natasha's hands and backed up a bit before delivering a kick to the back of her head, sending her onto her stomach. Approaching the redhead again, this time her hands burning with energy, she reached down and listened in horror as Natasha screamed in pain as the energy burned into her arms.
"Enough, Karley. I don't want her too broken. She still has a purpose," Dreykov commanded, the inhuman instantly obeying as she backed away from the redhead. "You wouldn't be so glib if you had any notion of the scope of what I've built." Natasha weakly pushed herself off of the ground, standing up as she held her arms. Damn those burns had hurt. "I own this world. Me," Dreykov continued.
"You seem desperate to impress me," the redhead wiped the blood from her nose, shooting a smile to the man in front of her.
"I don't need to impress you," he scoffed, opening a part of his desk to reveal a scanner. "I don't need to impress anyone. These world leaders, these great men, they answer to me and my Widows." Both of the girls watched as he used the ring on his finger as a password, logging into his computer system. Natasha smiled on the inside, getting exactly what she wanted.
Daisy had made her way through the compound undetected for the most part, having to knock out a few guards on the way. She was desperate to get to her sister and Natasha, but was also dreading it. She knew that it would inevitably lead to a fight with Karley, which was the last thing she wanted.
Daisy couldn't even figure out when the Red Dawn had gotten their hooks in her sister again. She knew that Karley was hit with the mind wiping drug in the temple, but they had gotten the red book that Mrs. Frederic used. Though it did make some sense as every lead the Avengers pursued led to a dead end.
Following Melina's directions, Daisy felt her sister and Natasha's familiar vibrations nearby. They were close.
She just hoped Yelena got the antidote quickly.
"And with you, an Avenger under my control, I can finally come out of the shadows, using the only natural resource the world has too much of." Natasha watched as face after face of little girls flashed across the screen in front of her. "Girls."
Glancing towards the door when she caught sight of someone shifting behind it, Natasha caught a glimpse of Daisy standing just outside. Finally, the redhead sighed.
Turning around to face the man once more, having gotten what she came here for, Natasha walked towards him. She could see out of the corner of her eye that Karley was shifting uncomfortably, ready to act if she tried anything.
"All from that little console?" She asked innocently.
"Yeah," Dreykov answered, not knowing what was about to come as Natasha approached him, a wide smile on her face as she laughed. "Oh, you find this amusing? Why are you laughing?" He asked uneasily as the redhead stood in front of his desk.
"Don't take it personal, but, uh," she tilted her head. "Thank you for your cooperation." Thinking back to what Melina told her before they started their plan, she knew what she was about to do was going to hurt like a bitch, but she's been through worse. She sighed. "You weren't quite strong enough, so..." she trailed off, seeing Karley watching closely as her hands lit up. "I'll have to finish it myself."
Dreykov laughed, oblivious to the danger he was about to be in.
"And what are you going to do?" He asked amused. Natasha stared at him. Now or nothing, she thought as she brought her head down onto his desk as hard as she could. Pain exploded through her nose, blood gushing out instantly before looking at the man who has ruined so many lives, including hers.
"Sever the nerve," she whispered.
Dreykov reached for his tablet, hitting a button as the screen locked out of the computer in front of them, also alerting his Widows that he was in danger.
Karley marched forward unwillingly at seeing Dreykov being attacked, getting ready to blast Natasha to hell when a shockwave threw her back twenty feet, the girl skidding to a stop as she hit the wall, her mask falling off. She jumped to her feet quickly to see her sister standing there, hand outstretched in her direction.
"Daisy," she growled, seeing Natasha punching Dreykov who was shouting for help.
"Do something you useless piece of shit!" He cried desperately to Karley.
Energy flooded the younger sister as she sent a blast of blue towards the redhead that was attacking Dreykov. His protection was her priority, even if she died while doing it.
Seeing the blast that Karley sent towards her girlfriend, Daisy easily sensed the vibrations that formed the energy, quaking it into nothing but little blue sparks. As the younger sister threw multiple bolts of energy at Daisy, seeing that she couldn't protect Dreykov until she was taken care of, the ground beneath them all shook violently, sending Karley's energy off course and into the wall.
"Was that you?" Natasha quickly asked her girlfriend.
"Wasn't me!" Daisy shouted back as she marched towards her younger sister who was approaching them once more. Time to teach her who the better fighter was.
Karley threw a punch towards her sister, her hands radiating blue. Daisy threw her own arm up with vibrations coming from them, the two sisters testing their powers against each other as their hands were locked together. The collision of their powers made the room start to glow in blue, both of them grunting as they tried to overpower the other. It was a stalemate.
Natasha kicked Dreykov in the head, sending him onto his back.
"Not so talkative now, are you?" She taunted as the room erupted in sparks, everything around them starting to fall apart from the explosion moments before. Dreykov easily taken care of, she turned to watch as Daisy and Karley's powers were growing around the two of them. It was weird, the blue energy glowing brighter as Daisy was quaking the energy apart as best she could.
Running up to the younger sister, Natasha swung her legs around Karley, using her body weight to throw her to the ground. Daisy kneeled over, panting at how exhausted she already was.
Karley wasted no time as she put her hands on the redheads chest, blasting her into the ceiling fifteen feet above her. Daisy watched as her girlfriend smashed into the ceiling before surrounding her with vibrations as she slowly started lowering her to the ground. As she did though, she felt a blast of heat hit her chest, causing her to drop her girlfriend the rest of the way as Daisy went crashing into the desk.
Natasha landed on her knees, arm stretched behind her. She smiled at how Yelena would pick on her for doing a superhero pose if she was here.
"Karley!" Daisy shouted, seeing the younger girl helping Dreykov off the ground as the duo made their way to the door. Her sister stopped for a moment, looking over her shoulder to her older sister for a moment.
"I'm sorry," she apologized as a group of Widows entered into the room.
"Nobody leaves this room until they're dead. Make them suffer," Dreykov ordered the girls. "You're coming with me Karley."
Natasha and Daisy watched as they left. Their attention turned to the room as it flooded with Widows.
"You ready babe?" Natasha asked, her back hitting Daisy's as the girls circled the duo.
"I'm always ready," her girlfriend replied just as the first Widow launched herself at them. Daisy easily shot her hand up, blasting the girl into the floor.
Seeing that Daisy was an inhuman, ten of the Widows rushed her at once, swinging their multiple weapons. Try as she might, Daisy couldn't keep every single one of them off of her, feeling as a staff collided with her face, her head snapping to the side. Arms wrapped themselves around her torso, the girl trying to pin the inhumans arms behind her back.
Feeling the vibrations build up around her, Daisy sent a shockwave off of her body, knocking the Widows who were close to her on their asses. Seeing Natasha pinned against a pillar, the inhuman sent a quick blast at one of the Widows, allowing the redhead to break free. As she did though, Daisy felt a searing pain in her stomach as a knife embedded itself a couple inches deep, her hand instinctually grabbing the wound.
Seeing Daisy fall to the ground with a knife sticking out of her, Natasha screamed as she struggled against the Widows who had her in a chokehold on her knees. There were just too many of them.
The redhead watched as Daisy weakly tried to fight the enclosing Widows, but it was no use as one of the punched her girlfriend across the face, another one following up with a knee to her head. They were losing this fight.
Her gaze was forced away from the brunette when the Widows around her started to beat the shit out of her. A knee to the face, then a fist, then a foot, a jab to the throat. Her whole body was in pain as she continued to struggle, desperate to get to her girlfriend. A Widow slowly walked up to the redhead, twirling a knife in her fingers. Smiling, the girl shoved the weapon into Natasha's shoulder. If she could she would've screamed at the pain, but she wasn't getting any air.
Just when she thought it was over, a small burst of light exploded above the group of widows around the redhead, raining red. The Widows all looked up at the strange red substance as it entered their system.
Having their own mind back, the Widows instantly backed away from Natasha as she sat there gulping in air. She didn't hesitate to crawl over to the brunette who was leaning against the desk, clutching her stomach.
"Daisy!" She screamed, gently pulling the girls hand away from the wound. Natasha could see how much blood her girlfriend had already lost as Yelena joined them on the ground.
"Oh my god," Yelena said, moving Natasha out of the way. She knew her sister wouldn't be in the right mindset at seeing her girlfriend bleeding. "Daisy you're going to be fine," the blond promised, grabbing a cloth from the desk above them and putting pressure on the wound.
"Ouch," Daisy groaned, causing Natasha to smile at how childish she sounded. "You know they're getting away," she winced in pain as Yelena pushed down harder.
"Yelena go," Natasha told her sister. "We'll be right behind you. Be careful though, Karley isn't herself," the redhead warned.
"I'll get her," the blond promised, standing up and heading for the door. "Be careful."
"I need to go after her too," Daisy said, her voice panicked as she jumped up in pain. "Are you okay?" She asked, gently touching the redheads shoulder.
"I'm okay Speedy, but sit down. You're in no condition to move," Natasha told her girlfriend. "I just need a minute to finish this," she explained, holding up Dreykovs ring as a pillar outside of the room crumbled to dust.
"I'm not losing my sister again. Besides, it isn't too deep, I'll be fine I promise," Daisy said.
"We'll help you," one of the Widows said, grabbing Daisy by the waist. "We're getting out of here too."
"Be careful," Daisy whispered, leaning in to kiss her girlfriend quickly before limping towards the door with the help of the girls.
"See you in a minute," the redhead grinned, having already started downloading the data on the computer.
As soon as the download finished Natasha ripped the USB out of the port and took off. Not a moment too soon, as the room exploded behind her. Whipping her pistols out she shot the window, using her body to crash through and jump, fire spitting out above her.
As she fell through the sky, she quickly spotting a broken railing, grabbing onto it and swinging into the broken hole in front of her. Groaning, she pushed herself off the ground and jumped in surprise when she saw who was locked in a cell in front of her.
Taskmaster was calmly standing there, assessing the redhead as the building collapsed.
"Antonia," Natasha said, walking towards the glass. As she got close, Antonia punched the door as hard as she could, aiming for Natasha's face. "No!" She pleaded, putting her hand against the glass. She was the one who had made Antonia the way she is today. It was her choices that led to this. Her responsibility. "I'm gonna open the door," she whispered, pressing her head against the door. "You're going to come after me. It's okay, it's okay." She looked into the mask. "I know you're still in there. And I'm not going to leave you. Okay."
Natasha entered the code, the cell slowly opening as Taskmaster walked towards her. As Antonia reached for the redhead, the ground beneath them exploded, sending the girls flying in opposite directions.
Natasha slid down the broken wing of the building, pulling out her ice picks and digging them into the ground to keep herself from falling to her death. As she dangled there, she could feel the whole arm of the building she was hanging onto shift, thankfully towards the flight deck where she could see Karley and Dreykov running for a jet.
Once she was hovering over the flight deck, Natasha let go and rolled onto the ground, standing up to sprint for the jet, Yelena and Daisy ahead of her.
Natasha watched as Yelena using her grappling hook to launch herself onto the wing of the jet containing Karley and Dreykov, the bird slowly taking off. The redhead ran faster.
"Karley!" Daisy screamed, watching as her sister protectively stood in front of Dreykov, her hair whipping around in the wind. She could also see that Yelena had taken her staff out, connecting the two pieces to form one as she positioned it above the engine. "Please, come back to me!" Daisy shouted above the noise.
"You know I can't do that," her sister said, hands glowing as she gathered energy.
"Then I'm sorry too," Daisy said, watching as Karley shot a ball of energy at her.
With her free hand that wasn't clutching her stomach, the older sister quaked apart the blast, sending a second, more condensed shockwave into her sister, knocking her out of the jet and into a free fall towards the ground. Not wasting a second, Daisy jumped over the railing, cutting through the air towards her sister who was flailing around.
"Yelena!" Natasha screamed this time, seeing that Karley was off the jet. "Don't do it!"
The blond looked to her sister, staff hovering above the engine as Dreykovs men opened fire on her.
"This was fun!" She shouted, dropping the staff into the engine as it exploded, shooting her into the open sky unconscious.
"No!" Natasha yelled, watching as her sister disappeared over the edge, the jet with Dreykov and his men exploding into pieces. Seeing a parachute on the ground in front of her, the redhead snatched it and jumped over, taking a page out of Daisy's book.
As the wind whipped her hair around, Natasha angled herself so she would gain speed, aiming for her sister. She saw that she was going to hit a piece of wreckage, so she clutched the parachute tighter and smashed into it, rolling out the other side as she continued soaring through the sky.
She could see her sister not too far ahead of her, the redhead gaining on her. As soon as their bodies collided, Natasha wrapped the parachute onto Yelena, holding on tight as she pulled the rip cord. The two slowly floated through the sky, debris falling around them. Looking around worriedly for her girlfriend, Natasha could see that the other two sister were below them. Blue energy was shooting towards Daisy, who in turn sent shockwaves back as they fell.
Her worrying was cut short, however, when she saw another figure shooting towards them.
Taskmaster.
"It was real for me too," Natasha whispered, knowing that this could be the last time she saw her sister. Yelena smiled, which quickly turned into a frown when her sister let go of the parachute, falling backwards.
"Natasha!" She screamed in horror, reaching out for her sister as she watched Taskmaster fly by her, instead going after the redhead.
Natasha saw a flat surface in front of her, deciding that this was as good a spot ever as she grabbed onto it, her feet sliding across the surface smoothly as she turned. She watched Antonia do the same thing she had, drawing her sword and digging it into the surface to slow herself down, before launching her body towards the redhead, the two of them flying through the air once again.
The two woman exchanged punches as Natasha desperately tried to keep the sword away from her. Pain exploded in her back when they crashed through a piece of debris, the punches continuing as they rapidly approached the ground. At last second, the redhead reached around Antonia and pulled the rip cord, the duo spinning out of control as they collided with the ground. Natasha rolled a few times before landing on her stomach, groaning in pain as her shoulder was jolted, blood spilling down her back.
The parachute dragged Antonia across the small body of water they landed next to, but she quickly cut the strings off with her sword before limping towards the redhead through the water.
Panting from exhaustion and pain, Natasha watched Antonia approach her.
"Okay," she whispered to herself. "Let's go."
Taskmaster wasted no time as she stabbed towards Natasha with the sword, the redhead grabbing her arm as they fought for control over the weapon. Managing to grab the hilt of the sword, Natasha jumped onto the other girls chest, using her body weight to kick away, doing a backflip through the air. She landed easily, flourishing the sword as she pointed the tip towards her enemy before remembering who it was behind the mask. She put her hands up, backing up a bit.
"Enough," she pleaded, Antonia eyeing her curiously as she dropped the sword. A hand shot out, wrapping itself around Natasha's neck. Smashing her forearm onto the limb that was choking her, she was released as she ducked under the arm, swinging around and jumping onto the girls back. Still having ahold on Antonia's arm, she punched the spot she knew held the small panel controlling the girls helmet, effectively opening it as the mask fell off.
Using her body weight once more, she swung them around, sending both girls crashing to the ground, a red vial sitting in the middle of the duo. They both eyed it.
Antonia crawled towards the vial as Natasha gracefully flipped herself onto her knees, bring her arm down and smashing the glass, watching as the antidote took over Antonia. The black haired girl paused, letting the cure sink in before falling on her back, breathing heavily. Natasha crawled over to the girl, placing a hand on her chest.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, knowing that she was the one responsible for her, having almost killed her all those years ago. "I'm sorry," tears swelled in her eyes.
"Is he gone?" Antonia whispered hopefully.
"He's gone," Natasha assured her, grateful that their encounter didn't end in more bloodshed.
As Karley was blasted out of the jet, panic flooded her system. She didn't have the energy to teleport and she couldn't fly.
As she flailed through the sky, debris falling around her, she saw a shape making its way towards her.
"Daisy," she whispered through clenched teeth, Dreykovs voice echoing in her head.
'Nobody leaves this room until they're dead. Make them suffer.'
She smiled, watching as her sister approached her. They had killed Dreykov, and she would make them pay for that.
Digging deep, Karley managed to summon energy around her fists, shooting them at the older sister who turned herself to avoid the blasts.
"Karley stop! I'm trying to save you!" Daisy shouted desperately, seeing the ground approaching below them. She didn't have long.
"You killed him!" Karley shouted as they collided together in the air. The younger sister's hands wrapped around Daisy's throat as she gathered energy in her palms.
Daisy screamed in pain when she felt the burning in her neck as she shoved her elbows into her sister's arm, breaking her hands. Knowing that the younger girl wasn't going to go down easily, Daisy placed her hands on either side of Karley's head, sending soft shockwaves through. She watched as her sister's fell limp in her arms, knowing that she was unconscious.
She took a moment to thank Stark for teaching her that these last few months during training.
Wrapping one arm around her younger sister, Daisy started breaking their fall as the approached the ground. It wasn't the best landing she's ever had as the two of them tumbled onto the ground violently, but they were both still alive and that's all that mattered.
As the sisters lay there, Daisy clutching her stomach to try and stop the blood, she could see that Natasha was a few hundred feet away from her.
"You're going to kill me one day," Daisy whispered to her sister, stroking her hair out of her face. "But not today."
Managing to find strength for her sister, Daisy lifted the heavy girl into her arms as she slowly stumbled towards her girlfriend.
"Yelena?" Natasha gently said, grabbing her sisters face between her hands.
"We're both upside down," Yelena mumbled when Natasha popped into her sight, causing the girl to laugh as she sat up.
"Forgive me little sister," Natasha apologized in Russian before switching to English. "I should've come back for you."
"You don't have to say that," the blond told her. "It's okay."
"I meant what I said. It was real for me too," Natasha said, a tear crawling its way down her cheek.
Yelena just smiled, happy to know she wasn't the only one, that the best part of her life wasn't a total lie as they embraced each other.
"Thank you," she said into Natasha's ear as they sat there for a moment.
Natasha looked over her sisters shoulder as her heart dropped.
Daisy was limping towards them clutching a body in her arms. A body that wasn't moving.
Thinking the worst the redhead jumped to her feet and ran to the two of them, Yelena not far behind.
"Is she...?" Natasha trailed off, not wanting to say it for fear that if she did her girlfriend would break down. Daisy smiled a bit, tears streaming down her face.
"No, she's just unconscious. I wouldn't say no to the antidote though," she mumbled, Natasha taking Karley's body from her girlfriend as she set the inhuman on the ground gently.
"Oh, yea," Yelena said, pulling one of the last vials of the antidote out of her jacket. "I told you that my jacket was cool," she pointed out as she crouched down next to the girl on the ground and crushed the vial in her hands. They all watched as the red dust sprinkled over her, knowing that she would be fine.
"We need to get that tended to," Natasha said, holding her hand on top of Daisy's wound.
"Yea, I don't feel the best," Daisy admitted, leaning in to her girlfriends side as the redhead held her up. "Especially after flying. That shits hard."
"That's not flying," a voice groaned from the ground, her deep green eyes fluttering open weakly. "That was falling with style." Daisy laughed as she crouched down to hug her sister, who clung onto her tightly. "I'm so sorry," Karley said, her voice breaking as she was finally free from the Red Dawn. "I'm so, so sorry."
Daisy held her as she cried, knowing that her little sister was back.
"Hey I don't want to hear any of that," she whispered back. "That wasn't you."
"I was aware of everything I was doing," Karley said through the tears. "I just couldn't control myself, and you and Natasha almost died for it."
"What am I, chopped liver?" The blond asked causing Karley to laugh. "It's not like I blew myself up or anything."
"We're just glad you're back with us kid," Natasha said, helping the younger sister off the ground as the four girls stood together.
"Now what?" Yelena asked, looking around the bruised and bloodied group. They could hear sirens in the distance.
"Now we go home," Natasha answered, grabbing her sister while holding Daisy with her other arm. "You could always come with us, you know?" She told the blond. "The Avengers could always use another girl on the team."
Yelena contemplated the offer for a minute before her gaze fell upon Karley.
"I might just take you up on that," she told her sister. "Besides, living with a billionaire could be fun. You know, with all his expensive toys, his fancy parties, super fast jets. On one condition." Natasha raised her eyebrow at that. "I'm getting a dog."
They all laughed at that, watching as government vehicles approached them.
"You might have to put the dog on hold for a bit," Daisy commented, watching as Senator Ross stepped out. "First, we have to face the senate."
"We'll do that together."
Annnnnnnd that's another chapter for y'all! As you can see, Yelena is indeed joining the team! Do you like her and Karley together? Let me know what you think in the comments! Also I just have to say that the scene where Natasha manipulates Dreykov was LEGENDARY. She's a total badass. Then when she smashes her head on the desk to sever the nerve?! God she's a queen. Anyways, I'd love to see suggestions of what y'all would like to see in the story, so don't be afraid to let me know! Another chapter will be coming shortly ;)