Chapter Seven
Wanda's eyes shot open as the door hissed open and cold air knifed across her skin. When the hell had she fallen asleep?! Stryker strode in, followed by two guys in lab coats and about four armed men in military fatigues. Nina, still in Wanda's arms, woke up slowly, disoriented, took in the sight of Stryker and his goons and whimpered, burrowing back into Wanda's arms, trembling. Wanda squeezed her in a hug, trying to reassure her, before glaring up at Stryker.
"What?"
He grinned, a wolf's grin. "My scientists need to do some preliminary exams on you, and Nina here needs another blood draw."
Wanda wanted to tell him to go to hell, and try and fight them off, but she hadn't forgotten Stryker's threat to hurt Nina if she didn't go along with his plans, plus she still had on the collar that prohibited her using her powers. She settled for glaring daggers at all of them, and embracing Nina as close as she could. "Fine." She spat. "But Nina and I are staying together."
Stryker looked at the scientists. When they didn't object, he shrugged. "Fine. Follow me." After all, it might make the baby freak easier to control. He was sick of the kid's hysteria every time they had to carry out a procedure. Nodding to the soldiers, he signalled for them to surround the mutants, weapons on view, but not yet aimed.
Wanda slid Nina from her lap, wincing as her lower back cramped for sitting too long, and stood slowly, trying to encourage Nina to do the same, but the little girl wouldn't budge, eyes closed, hands pressed to her ears. Wanda completely ignored their audience, moving to kneel in front of her small sister, gambling that, as Stryker seemed to want them both for whatever reason, that she wouldn't be punished for trying to get Nina to co-operate.
"Nina, sweetheart, can you look at me?" Gently, she touched the little girl's face. "Please?"
Huge brown tear filled eyes, wide with fear, met hers, and Wanda's heart broke. She hated herself for being part of this, making this child do something that might well be painful, when she'd been through more than enough already. Boiling rage at Stryker erupted in her veins once more, but she stifled it for Nina's sake.
"Good girl." She stroked her hair. "You've been really brave so far." Wanda smiled. "You're making me feel brave as well." Nina didn't respond, except with a blink, but Wanda continued. "We have to go with these men for a little while, but then we can come back here and talk some more, alright?"
Nina peeked at Stryker's men, then shuddered from head to toe, biting her lip. She pulled Wanda's borrowed jacket tighter round herself, and looked anxiously at Wanda, who took a guess at what she might mean. "I'll be with you the whole time, I promise." She stared straight into Nina's eyes. "I'll never leave you. Cross my heart." She made the X across her heart, and waited, hoping Nina wouldn't do anything to anger Stryker, who was already tutting impatiently.
Very slowly, Nina stood, staying as close to Wanda as possible, keeping her gaze on the floor. Wanda exhaled silently in relief as she stood up again. "Well done. You're just as brave as Supergirl." Not that Nina probably had any idea who that was. "Do you want me to hold your hand, honey?"
A pause, then a silent head-shake. After a minute, Nina twitched her arms upwards towards Wanda, asking to be picked up.
Well, why not? Nina was small for her age, and she had been starved of contact for at least a month. With a grunt, Wanda hefted her into her arms. Nina's legs wrapped round her waist and she hid her face in Wanda's shoulder.
"If you are quite finished." Stryker snapped. He didn't wait for a reply, beginning to stride down a corridor.
It was probably good he hadn't waited for her to answer, Wanda mused, as she'd probably have either started swearing, or spat at him. Neither of which would do Nina any good!
Wanda kept her eyes peeled for any doors or windows, looking for potential escape points, but saw nothing but blank stone walls. Damnit.
She whispered softly to Nina as they followed Stryker into a brightly lit lab, about how brave she was being, that Wanda loved her and wouldn't ever leave her.
She just hoped it was enough to keep her calm while these scientists carried out whatever 'tests' they had in mind.
Peter's fingers drummed frantically, and his foot tapped in time with his pulse as he tried to get up the nerve to actually phone Mom. And tell her that Wanda had gone missing. He groaned. Kill me now, somebody, it'll be faster.
He dragged in several deep breaths and dialled home before he lost his nerve. What the heck was he supposed to say?
The phone began ringing, and Peter's stomach churned. Mom would flay him alive- Wanda was only at the school because of him, and now his twin could be anywhere, going through god-knew-what-
"Hello?" Mom's voice, sounding quite relaxed, made Peter's heart stand still.
"Mom... it's Peter." His mouth was dry. "I-I have to tell you something..."
"Peter?" Her tone was wary now. "What's going on? Is everything alright?"
"No." Peter's throat swelled shut and he had to swallow hard before speaking again. "It... It's Wanda."
"What? What's happened?!" The words were sharp with worry. "Is she alright?"
"...She's missing." Just saying the words out loud made Peter start to panic.
There was a wordless exclamation from Marya, and some clattering noises that made him think she might've dropped the phone. He could imagine her face paling as she pictured the worst, Wanda being hurt or even killed... And it might even be true, a voice in his mind pointed out, making him shiver. Telling Mom that Wanda had disappeared made it feel a hell of a lot more real.
"Peter." Mom's voice was curt now, businesslike, the way it always went when she was trying to solve a problem rather than worry about it. "Are you still there?"
"Yeah," he managed, in a rasp that didn't even sound like his voice.
"Are you still at that school?"
"Um, yeah-"
"I'm coming up there. Don't leave until I arrive. And tell whoever's in charge that I'll want answers."
Peter jumped. "What? Mom, wait, um... Da- Erik's still here..."
But she had already hung up.
He groaned, loudly. This is going to be a disaster.
After a few tests on Wanda- blood draw, EEG, MRI scan- the scientists moved on to Nina, who huddled back against Wanda, trembling, until they forcibly dragged her away. Wanda was restrained by one of the security guards so she could only watch Nina helplessly as she was strapped to a table and had blood and bone marrow drawn from her without any reassurance whatsoever. The hopeless look on the child's face made Wanda simultaneously feel heartbroken and had her blood boiling with anger. Who were these so-called doctors, what sort of monsters, to treat a traumatized little girl like this?!
Nina's big brown eyes, shining with tears, found Wanda's as another syringe was prepared, and the scientists pinned Nina's skinny arm down, clearly ready to inject her again. Tears ran down Nina's face, and her lower lip trembled, but she didn't make a sound, only kept staring at Wanda.
It was too much. Wanda squirmed, managing to jam her elbow into the gut of the guy holding her back. He let go of her with a surprised grunt, and she pushed her way to Nina's side just as she was injected again. Ignoring the protests of the scientists, Wanda took Nina's little hand in hers, and caressed her brow with the other.
"It's alright, sweetheart, it's over for now." She glared round at the white-coated men, daring them to contradict her. One of them, a guy who looked barely older than Wanda herself, couldn't make eye contact with her, and Wanda filed that away for future reference- this guy didn't seem too fond of what they were doing, that could be useful later. She gently wiped tears from Nina's face, re-focusing on her sister, speaking softly. "You're doing really well. I think you must be braver than me." She wanted to tell Nina that this was wrong, and the men should be stopped, that they'd be out of this hellhole soon, but she was afraid of what might happen if she said too much. If Stryker decided to separate them, or worse, carried out his threat to make Nina suffer if Wanda stepped out of line...
Nina's eyes slid shut. Wanda's heart-rate jumped, and she shook her slightly. "Nina?" There was no response, but the little girl's breathing was deep and even. Wanda whirled to glare at the guy who'd injected her. "You sedated her. Why?"
The automatic doors of the lab hissed open as she spoke, and Stryker came in. He must have heard her words, as he was the one who replied.
"Our primary facility is ready for use again now, so we're relocating there. Once we get there, our real testing can begin. Miss Lehnsherr will be kept sedated for the journey to make it easier for us to move her. I'll let you stay with her, but you'll be in restraints. With her asleep, you'll be in no position to try anything, will you?" He laughed. "I mean, how far would you get, if you tried to run, in handcuffs and with a sleeping kid?" He unstrapped Nina from the table and lifted her, keeping hold of her as several armed men followed him into the room, guns trained on Wanda.
Stryker tightened his grip on Nina as one of the scientists approached Wanda, holding out a set of handcuffs. Stryker's eyes stayed fixed on hers.
Wanda bristled, having got the message. Stryker was literally holding Nina hostage until she'd let herself be cuffed. As if she'd try anything anyway, with guns pointed at her! Teeth clenched, she held out her wrists. To her surprise, it was the young guy, who'd looked uneasy earlier, that put the cuffs on her. He met her eyes for the first time, his gaze intent. The cuffs went tight, then, inexplicably, one of them loosened as the guy fidgeted with them. He closed one eye in a very slow wink before moving away. Wanda looked down to hide her expression. The cuffs looked normal, but the left one felt as if it would give way if she yanked it hard enough.
Was the guy trying to help her, or was this a set-up to get her in trouble? She didn't have long to think about it, as Stryker shoved Nina's limp form into her arms, as if handing her a sack of garbage, and marched from the room. The scientists followed him, and the armed guards moved into a line surrounding Wanda, making it clear she was to follow. Silently, she did so, her mind going a mile a minute. Stryker was moving them somewhere else, which could mean time outside, and she had Nina. Plus, Stryker (presumably) didn't know she had a way out of the cuffs... She suppressed a grin. They might have a chance to get out of here!
She hefted Nina a little, so her head drooped to Wanda's shoulder, making her easier to carry. After following a labyrinth of badly-lit corridors, abruptly they were outside, the daylight searing Wanda's eyes for a second. Once she'd blinked enough that she could see, she realized they were being led to vehicles, not planes. That meant either they weren't going far, or Stryker didn't want to draw unecessary attention by using air travel. She took in her surroundings, but nothing she saw was familiar- it could have been any generic military compound from a movie.
She and Nina were shoved into the back of a truck with no windows. It was a large space, with no seats, so they'd be bouncing around like pinballs. Four soldiers joined them, as well as two 'doctors'. Wanda wasn't surprised to see her 'ally' there, though just what he was up to eluded her. How had he got Stryker to let him travel with them, when he wasn't really on Stryker's side? She didn't have time to re-think the 'trap' angle now- this might be the best chance of escape she got.
The truck door slammed, leaving them in near pitch-darkness and the engine started. Wanda focused on keeping herself and Nina from being tossed around as the journey began. No-one spoke. The soldiers had put their guns away, clearly thinking there was no point in maintaining the threat while they travelled- Wanda knew the situation, there was nothing she could do at this precise moment.
Time passed. It could have been minutes or hours, there was no way to tell. Wanda dozed, on and off, jerking awake every time the truck rumbled beneath her- they must have been travelling on rough terrain.
Eventually, Nina began to squirm. The sedation was wearing off, which meant they had been travelling for at least four hours.
Her potential ally, the young scientist, looked at her, speaking carefully. "I'm meant to sedate her again if she wakes up, but that's not really good for kids. If you can keep her quiet, I'll leave her awake."
The other scientist grumbled, but Wanda nodded. She thought she got the guy's meaning- if a chance did arise to get away, it would be easier with Nina awake than asleep.
Nina's eyes opened slowly, and she looked groggy, but she tensed immediately on waking in darkness- obviously she had no idea where she was. She began thrashing and breathing hard. Wanda wrapped her arms round her tightly, whispering reassurances.
"It's OK, Nina. I'm here. We're going somewhere else now, we're in a big truck, that's why it's dark. Don't be scared, I've got you." She gave her another reassuring hug.
Slowly, Nina stopped fighting. Wanda felt her little sister's hands on her face, probably trying to work out where Wanda was, as her eyes hadn't adjusted to the lack of light yet. Wanda shifted so Nina was curled in her lap once more, her face buried in Wanda's chest. She didn't respond to Wanda's words, but she remained still. Her breathing evened out, in time with Wanda's heartbeat. Wanda stroked the dark hair soothingly, wishing she could do more.
The truck jerked to a halt. The screech of the brakes was audible, even in here. Wanda jumped, startled.
"Border patrol." Her tentative ally, the scientist, spoke softly. "We're being questioned before crossing into Canada." He stood, yawning, as if he were just stretching his legs. His hand brushed the shoulder of the other scientist, and the older man drooped, as if sound asleep. Moving rapidly now, the guy darted from soldier to soldier, sending them all to sleep with a single brush of his hand, before any of them had time to react.
Wanda's head spun. This guy was a mutant?! Then instinct took over, and she pulled against her handcuffs as hard as she could. The left one snapped, and Wanda bolted to her feet. Nina, jostled from her lap, was staring up at her, wide-eyed.
Wanda helped her to her feet, hugging her. "We can get away now." she whispered softly in her sister's ear.
Nina's eyes bugged. She still seemed half-awake, the sedation not having worn off fully yet. Wanda held her close, looking at the young mutant, who was now unlocking the back door of the truck.
"Stryker won't have any idea there's a problem. We're on the Canadian/American border, surrounded by miles of forest. When I open these doors, run. And don't look back. With luck, you'll have a couple hours before Stryker even realizes you've gone."
Wanda lifted Nina into her arms. "But... what about you?"
"We're gonna run in different directions. Wiith luck, these creeps will never find either of us." His eyes clouded. "I joined a military force thinking they wanted to help mutants. I'd never have done it if I'd known what a psycho Stryker was. I'm sorry."
Wanda nodded, far from sure this was the best idea, but knowing this was their only chance. "The collars that suppress our powers-"
"I can't get em off. I'm sorry."
Wanda sighed. At least they'd be free, and hopefully she'd be able to call to Xavier for help.
The guy reached for the door handle. "Ready?"
Wanda tightened her grip on Nina, moving closer to the door, bracing herself to jump.
The guy flung the door open and leapt. Wanda followed suit, running as fast as she could for the cover of the trees, clutching her sister tightly. She heard a door slam, and prayed it was just the guy closing the truck door to buy them more time. She wasn't waiting round to find out though, and kept running until lack of breath forced her to stop. For a few seconds, she'd been able to hear their ally bolting as well, but that sound had long faded by the time she stopped, collapsing against a tree, gasping.
Nina stared at her in wonder, face pale in the daylight, eyes wide. "C-can we go home now?"
Wanda's jaw dropped. Nina's voice was a wisp, barely audible, but she had spoken, for the first time in who knew how long. Choked up with emotion, she simply nodded, hugging Nina once more. "We'll be somewhere safe soon, I promise." As soon as I can get hold of Xavier and get us out of these woods. "We might have to stay in the woods for a little bit, but we'll be OK, alright?"
Nina nodded, seeming to trust Wanda completely. A tiny smile grew on her face.
Wanda closed her eyes for a second. Xavier! Can you hear me?
To her relief, there was an immediate response. Wanda! Where are you? Are you alright?
Yeah, we're OK. Just got away from some nutjob called Stryker, but-
We?!
Oh. Wanda had forgotten Charles didn't know about Nina. She quickly explained what had happened, letting him see the memories that involved Nina, and what she knew of how the little girl had survived. For a long minute, he was silent. Wanda supposed it wasn't often that your best friend/enemy's dead daughter was found to be alive. It had to be a shock.
Charles' voice was incredulous when he spoke again. I have your co-ordinates. Stay where you are. I'll send someone to fetch you.
Alright, and, uh... maybe don't let Erik come along just yet? Nina's very traumatized, and seeing him might overwhelm her. The way he might react to this...
Of course. It will be Raven, Hank and Peter. They should be there within two hours.
Wanda blinked. That fast?
The Blackbird was designed to be fast. There was an edge of humor in Charles' voice now. Stay safe, both of you. Now I have to go tell Erik he can't be one of the ones to retrieve you. And I have to work out what to say about Nina...
Tell him about that in a metal-free zone. Wanda suggested dryly. She heard Charles laugh nervously as the talk ended.
Nina tugged on her hand. "Hungry," she whispered.
Wanda winced. In the rush of escape, she hadn't thought about food. There were bushes nearby that held berries, but she had no idea which ones might be safe to eat. "I'm sorry, honey. I don't have anything." She hugged Nina close, trying to keep her warm. "But someone will be here to get us soon, I promise, and then we can go to my home, a big warm house where there's lots of people and food. Does that sound good?" She decided not to mention Erik or Peter yet- she had no idea if Nina really believed that they were sisters, and surprising her with more family right now would not be a good idea. As for Erik, Nina hadn't said or done anything that suggested she missed her Papa, so Wanda was leaving that issue alone until they were reunited.
Nina nodded, her eyes hopeful. "Home soon?"
Wanda bit her lip and nodded. Now was not the time to explain that Nina's old home in Poland wasn't there any more, at least, not to live in. It wouldn't be safe, but there was no need to upset Nina by saying so, not yet. She led Nina over to a small copse of trees, where they would at least have shelter from the wind, and sat down on a fallen tree. Nina, out of habit, crawled into her lap, thumb in mouth, clearly wanting another hug.
Wanda was happy to oblige, enjoying the moment of peace and quiet, holding her little sister. She knew 'peace and quiet' were unlikely when they got back to the school- seeing Erik again after he'd 'abandoned' her (in Nina's own view) would almost certainly unsettle Nina again, and helping the child through that would take a lot of time and effort.
Charles was shaking his head in disbelief at what he'd learned from Wanda- Nina Lehnsherr, alive?!- as he quickly sent telepathic messages to Raven, Hank and Peter, giving them the co-ordinates and telling them to go straight to the Blackbird and take off, explaining as quickly as he could and ignoring their stunned questions. That would ensure they were gone before word reached Erik, and then his old friend wouldn't be able to waste time arguing about going with them. Having sensed the team departing, he took a steadying breath and went to find Erik.
He was in the library, tidying up some books that appeared to have fallen. Charles approached him quietly, trying to find the right words. How did one go about explaining something like this? 'We found your daughter and she will be back safely soon. Oh, by the way, she also found that your other daughter isn't dead after all and she'll be coming back here as well'. He shook his head. There was no good way to do this.
Erik turned to peer at him. "It's not like you to enter a room and just sit in silence, Charles."
Good news first. "Wanda made contact with me a few minutes ago. She's managed to escape Stryker and is hidden. Hank, Raven and Peter have gone in the Blackbird to bring her home."
Erik's fists clenched slowly. "And I wasn't invited to go along because..."
"Well, for one, I wanted to get her back as soon as possible, preferably before Stryker realizes he's lost his prisoners-" Charles cut himself off, but too late; Erik had heard.
"Prisoners? Plural? Stryker had more than one mutant captive?"
"Yes... Erik, you should sit down." Charles took a deep breath. "This will be a shock. It... It's about your Nina..." He explained as gently as he could. By the time he'd finished, Erik's face was ashen and he swayed where he stood. Charles reached out for him, concerned. "Erik-"
"Leave me alone." His voice was stunned, defeated, hopeless. His expression matched his tone as he simply walked from the room, looking like he just couldn't take any more.
Charles' heart ached for his friend, but there was nothing he could do or say now. Erik would have to come to terms with this on his own.
Marya Maximoff threw open her car door seconds after pulling up to Xavier's school and slamming on the brakes. She should have been exhausted, driving for over four hours after receiving Peter's phone call, but adrenaline and fear for her oldest daughter kept her fully alert.
Fifteen year old Ana climbed out from the passenger seat, groaning as her cramped legs protested. She hadn't been happy at just being bundled into the car without an explanation from her mom, but Marya had explained Wanda's disappearance during the journey, and Ana had panicked as much as Marya at the thought of her sister being missing.
Marya herself had run towards the front door and was now pounding on it, her anger and fear plain to see on her face. Ana winced inwardly as she joined her mom on the doorstep. She pitied whoever ended up on the receiving end of Mom's temper!
The door was opened by a tall man with dark hair and blue eyes. Marya actually recoiled when she saw him, and Ana blinked a few times before she recognized the guy. Magneto! But what's he doing here? I thought this school was meant to be a good place... And, even weirder, it seemed like her mom knew the guy...
Magneto's- Erik's- shoulders slumped when he saw her mom, which was even freakier. "Marya." His voice was weary, resigned.
"Erik." Mom's voice was tight with strain. "I should have known you'd be involved in this."
Erik held a hand up, stopping Marya from saying anything else. "Wanda has been located. Peter and some others are on their way to bring her back here. She's unhurt, so there's no need for you to panic." He stepped back. "Come inside. But I warn you, Marya, I have just had a hell of a shock, on top of other... recent revelations that you never told me about, so now is not the time to start a fight with me."
Once they were in the building, Erik let the door slam closed and simply stalked away, as a man in a wheelchair approached Marya and Ana, smiling warmly as if to make up for Erik's attitude.
Ana stared after Erik as her mom began talking to the guy in the chair- Charles Xavier, the school's owner and founder. Ana tried to listen to him, but her thoughts kept wandering. How did Magneto and her mom know each other? What had he meant, hinting about something Mom had never told him? What was going on?
Ana had no idea, but was determined to find out, and soon.
To be continued...
