A/n: This chapter is one of my favourite to write. There are a few silent shoutouts to Vampire Diaries if you can spot them.

Chapter 14

The first thing that invaded his senses the moment he drew consciousness was the scent of burning flesh. But it couldn't be his own because he felt no fiery pain other than the pain of his back and arm muscles cramping. Sweat broke across his forehead as he stiffened a groan. His hands were chained above his head, explaining the tension in his shoulders and back. His toes barely touched the ground, allowing him only the barest means of support.

Forcing his eyes to open, the first sight that greeted him was of Katherine tied down to a steel chair. She was awake, her dark eyes surveying their holding area. Steve realised with a start that the smell of burning flesh was hers for her wrists that were bound to the armrests were blistered to the point of an angry red. To her credit, she seemed to hide the fact she was in pain well.

"Vervain ropes." she explained sullenly, eyeing the surveillance camera in the corner of the room. "Amanda's idea of kinky bondage."

"Are you alright?"

"There's still vervain in my system." she answered. "It'll be a while before I regain my strength."

Steve tested his bonds and despite his enhanced strength, the cuffs won't budget. He settled for studying their environment as she had done. "Where are we?"

"My guess, the mother ship." Katherine said. "The only place well-equipped enough to hold you."

"Great." he muttered sarcastically. His super hearing caught on the sound of footsteps, rapidly approaching their location. "Looks like we have company."

A blonde haired woman walked in. She strolled up to her prisoners, her gaze shamelessly roaming Steve's body with a smirk at her lips.

"Amanda." Katherine muttered.

Green eyes turned to her and they seemed to light up in glee. "Katherine, Klaus's precious doppelganger. You have been a very difficult woman to kill."

"I try to be." she retorted. "Still trying to get into Klaus's pants I see."

"Klaus is irrelevant in this matter." Amanda said brusquely. "He would disapprove of my alliance with the Chitauri undoubtedly but once I have brought about a world in which the supernatural can once more roam the earth, he'll see differently."

"You're a fool to think that." Katherine said tiredly.

"Says the one tied down, sedated with vervain. Did you actually think siding with a group of superheroes, the Avengers and a bunch of humans will help you escape Klaus?" Amanda sneered. "Or maybe you were just using them as a distraction while you ran again? She does that, you know."

That last part was addressed at Steve as she turned to him.

"She uses and discards everyone who has ever crossed her path. And she will do the same to you once this is over whether you win or not." the blonde said, reaching out to trail a finger along his chest. "I can see the appeal of you though."

Steve bit the inside of his cheek as her hand roamed his body as though he was her plaything, listening to the low throaty purr in her voice against his will.

"Captain America, I used to idolise you when I was human. Granted, you were the enemy of my people but Klaus has shown me that we were all alike as humans. Fragile, so weak…and easily controlled. Hm, what shall I have you do first? Set you lose on a killing spree or maybe…"

Standing on tip toes, Amanda leaned in, gripping his chin in a vice grip as she forced him to meet her eyes. Steve tried to wrench his head away but with his body suspended and his arms bounded, there was nothing he could do as he felt a certain lull in her voice.

"Kill the rest of the Avengers for me perhaps?"

It was a soft suggestion, a mental push as her pupils widened and dilated. Steve stared into her green gaze and scoffed.

"Not going to happen, lady."

Startled by his response, Amanda stepped back in confusion before her eyes narrowed on the other vampire. "I see you have them on vervain. Very clever. Must be hard though not being able to compel people to do your bidding, Katherine."

"Is that how you got those werewolves to listen to you?" Katherine asked instead. "Or did you threaten them somehow?"

"Don't be silly, Katherine. Everyone knows a vampire cannot compel a werewolf despite their beast-like mentality." Amanda said airily. "And that threatening one would be a death wish."

"So magic then." she deduced, watching her face.

Amanda fell silent immediately, realising she had almost given away her edge. Without warning she pulled out an ivory dagger from the back of her pants and drove it into Katherine's gut, eliciting a cry from her victim.

"No!" Steve shouted in horror as blood seeped from the wound forming a dark patch on her stomach.

"Don't get smart with me, doppelganger." she hissed, pulling out the dagger. "I should kill you right here and now."

"Then why don't you?" Katherine gritted out, dark eyes glaring back. "Drive a stake through my heart right now."

"Katherine!" Steve tugged on his bonds, alarmed by her bold challenge.

Amanda looked at him then back at her nemesis and smiled. "Oh, I will kill you but right now, I think I rather see you suffer. Tell me, how does the famous Captain like it in bed? No, wait. Don't tell me. I would like to find that out for myself once the vervain has worn off. Oh, the things I'll make him do as my servant."

Cold sweat broke across Steve's brow as she approached him once more, her eyes dark with hunger. Over her shoulder, he could see Katherine testing the ropes and could see that burn marks on her wrists were further aggravated.

"Keep struggling, Katherine. There's enough vervain in your system to hold you down for hours." Amanda told her, looking over her shoulder in amusement. She turned back to Steve, twirling the blood soaked dagger. "I can't drink from you now but I can make you bleed."

She raised the dagger to strike and that was when Katherine broke free. Tearing her hands free of the ropes with a hiss, Katherine surged to her feet and tackled Amanda as the blonde turned in shock. A shriek escaped Amanda as she struggled and fought back but despite her injuries, Katherine was faster, knocking her legs out from under her and slamming her into the ground. She flailed, arms trashing and knife coming close to slashing open the dark-haired vampire's throat. Katherine caught her armed wrist and twisted it in a direction it wasn't meant to turn and as a sounded crack echoed through the room, the dagger scattered uselessly to the floor.

"No!" Amanda screamed. "How?"

"I have been drinking vervain for the last one hundred years or so." Katherine revealed dangerously, driving her knee deeper into Amanda's back. "Vervain doesn't affect me that much anymore. Had you not been so talkative and keen on tormenting me, I would not have regained my strength."

Her fangs lengthened and she growled as her mouth closed over the immobile wrist, tearing at the veins and drawing blood from the trashing vampire. As the crimson, warm liquid flowed down her throat, her eyes, black as the darkest night, fluttered shut in content. Her wounds closed rapidly until all that remained were the blood stains. Her keen hearing detected several footsteps running to their venue. Amanda's struggles had stopped but unconscious she was not. With a satisfied sigh, Katherine pulled away from the wrist and dropped it just as several Chitauri burst through the door, their weapons pointed at her.

A man appeared at the entrance, annoyance in his tone as he took the sight of Amanda grounded into the floor by her nemesis' heel. "What are you doing?" he asked tiredly.

"Kill her!" Amanda screamed, trying to push herself up. "Kill her before she gets away, Zarkis!"

There was no way she could fight her way out of this one. Of that Steve was certain. They were outnumbered and even if Katherine did somehow managed to beat them and free him, they were still in enemy territory. He hoped she realised that and did nothing stupid.

"It's about time, Zarkis."

He blinked, confusion apparent on his face as Katherine stepped off the downed vampire and addressed the man as though they were old friends.

Zarkis crossed his arms in front of him calmly. "It was not my fault that Amanda saw fit to take matters into her own hands. Thanks to her…foolish action, SHIELD will now be alerted of Captain America's abduction."

Katherine picked up the dagger, eyeing it curiously. There was dark magic in this blade. It strummed through her fingers, drawn by her own demonic nature. "Don't worry. The Avengers have been sent to all four corners of the earth, searching for something that isn't even there and without Stark to complete the signal tracer, SHIELD has no means to finding your ship. The odds are on our side, Zarkis."

"Your plan worked, Katherine."

"Zarkis! What are you doing? Kill her! I order you!" the blonde vampire shouted, struggling to her feet.

He looked at her with a glare fierce enough to freeze her where she stood. "I answer to no one but Thanos and especially not to you, insolent vampire. You nearly jeopardized our entire plan just because your bloodlust for revenge could not be contained. You have left me with little choice."

"In favour of her? She's the enemy!" Amanda snarled.

"Katherine has done something no army or you could have accomplished." Zarkis said carefully. "New York is defenceless and Captain America is in our hands. She helped do that in a matter of days."

"Don't be too hard on her. She did give me a ride here. Saved me the hassle really of finding this place." Katherine smirked, further infuriating the blonde.

"She's working with them! It's a trap I tell you!"

"Oh, Amanda. How do you think I have survived for so long?" Katherine said light-heartedly. "Zarkis offered me an end to my running and hiding from Klaus in exchange for my helping him and I took it. As part of that deal, you get to die, Amanda."

"What?"

Steve shared Amanda' stunned sentiments. She has traded sides. In exchange for the same thing SHIELD offered her and more, Katherine has betrayed them and the rest of the world to the Chitauri. Steve refused to believe it, wanting to think that perhaps she has some plan.

Katherine watched him, her expression emotionless. "I'll always look out for myself. That's how I survive." she said softly. "Because I trust what I know."

Those words. Steve's eyes narrowed as he stared back at her. What was she doing?

"No!" Amanda moved but drained and injured, she was no match for Katherine who was in front of her in a blink of an eye and caught her by her throat.

"Katherine, we still need her for her army of werewolves." Zarkis pointed out. "You can kill her after."

"If you're worried about losing your guard dogs, don't be. The ivory dagger is what keeps them in her control." Katherine said slowly, drawing out the dagger. "We control the werewolves now."

"My wolves will rip you to pieces! Let go of me!" the blonde gasped, trying to pry off the death grip on her.

Katherine gave Zarkis an imploring look and he sighed heavily and nodded. Amanda's struggles intensified.

"Zarkis, you son of a –!"

Katherine drove the dagger straight into her chest, piercing the heart. Amanda gasped, choking on her own bile as the blade was twisted deeper.

"Payback is a bitch, isn't it?" Katherine said cruelly as she yanked out the blade.

She flung her into the wall, grinning in satisfaction when she heard something break from the impact. Amanda was barely conscious now, tiny pained moans escaping her as she attempted to crawl away, a thin trail of blood staining the floor. As Katherine stalked her like a predator, Zarkis produced a stake from his jacket and handed it to her. With the toe of her boot, Katherine turned the other vampire over.

"You should not have come after me." she whispered, staring into terrified green eyes and with one easy motion, drove the stake into exposed heart before Amanda could scream.

As the body desiccated, the skin flaking to dust as Amanda breathed her last undead breath, Zarkis glanced at Captain America. Their prisoner's eyes were on the dark-haired vampire, his conflicted emotions clear as day on his face.

"What of the Avenger then?" Zarkis asked emotionlessly. "Shall I kill him?"

"No." Katherine stepped off the body, straightening out her clothes as she did and scowling when she noticed the tear and blood stain on her top. "I have a much better idea. Let his blood be the first one to fuel the stones. The blood of Captain America bringing about the end of the human race. I kind of like the poetry of that."

"Katherine…why?" Steve asked as she stood in front of him, her arms crossed in front of her.

She chuckled softly, her eyes meeting his. "I am tired of running from my past, Steve. It's about time I made a stand and started fighting back, don't you think? Despite what Fury promised me, he is never going to find Klaus, let alone kill him. He was merely making empty promises just to get me to help you. So I made a deal with Zarkis. The Chitauri will help me take care of Klaus if I gave them the Avengers, starting with you."

"You know Stark will find this ship." he said with certainty.

"I have no doubt that he will." she said, running her fingers along her bracelet lightly. "But not in the next hour or day. Stark's good but he's not that good."

No, Stark was better than that. Steve knew that and he was certain she did too. Careful to school his frown into a blank face, his eyes followed her long fingers tracing the silver bracelet around her wrist lightly. A barely visibly blue blinking light pulsed silently from the metal.

"It's over, Cap." she said, drawing his gaze back to her. "The Avengers' moments in the sun are over and your fifteen minutes of fame are up."

"Don't count on it." he replied defiantly.

She smirked and turned to Zarkis who observed their conversation silently. "When the moment comes, I want to be the one who drains him." she said. "Call it a sentimental matter if you will."

Zarkis nodded. "Of course. Come now, Katherine."

Steve watched as they departed, Katherine without so much as a glance back and left him hanging in his cell. In the back of his mind, he began counting and hoping that Tony's technology was as advanced as he boasted them to be.

A/n: Good old 'always-look-out-for-myself' Katherine. You are the best character in the show.