Chapter four
Loki was carted out of the jet, surrounded by ten or so guards. As they marched him inside Winter followed. They walked down hall after hall, and she wondered where they were taking him. As they passed a lab, Loki looked through the window at Bruce Banner, and Winter felt her head turn towards him too. She knew that Loki's biggest playing card was getting the Hulk to turn on the rest of the team, Winter had even considered it herself. Too sloppy... And obvious. She saw Loki's body tense as he continued to walk, and she would have laughed if she could. They finally came to a huge room with a circular glass cell. The door to the cell opened with a hiss, and the guards pushed Loki inside. Winter stood against the wall, watching. She had begun to sweat, the effects of staying invisible taking their toll. Loki, please let me go somewhere and reform, I can't hold off my form much longer. He didn't even look at her, he was looking at the doorway. Winter watched as Nick Fury sauntered in. Okay, whatever. He walked over to the control panel, "In case it's unclear," he started, pushing a few buttons, " You try to escape, if you so much as scratch that glass," and he pushed a button, causing the floor beneath the cell to open up, wind rushing in. Loki looked down the side, and Fury yelled over the sound of the wind, "Thirty thousand feet straight down in a steel trap. You get how that works?" He pushes the button again, reclosing the floor. He gestures to Loki, then the control panel, "Ant. Boot." Loki laughs, "It's an impressive cage. Not built, I think, for me." "Built for something a lot stronger than you." Loki smirks, "Oh I've heard," He looks to the security camera aimed at his cell, "A mindless beast. Makes play he's still a man. How desperate are you, that you call on such lost creatures to defend you?" "How desperate am I? You threaten my world with war, you steal a force you can't hope to control. You talk about peace, and you kill because it's fun. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did." Loki mocks sympathy, "Ooh, it burns you to have come so close. To have the tesseract, to have power, unlimited power. And for what? A warm light for all mankind to share? And then to be reminded what real power is." Fury was still for a moment, before smirking himself, "Well let me know if 'real power' wants a magazine or something." And he left the room leaving them in silence. Loki looked at Winter, before turning his back to her, presumably so the camera couldn't see him. "I am going to temporarily relinquish my hold on you. You will walk back to your room and change into more suitable clothes. Visit your friends so that they know you are alright, but if you give anything away, if they suspect you work for me in any way, you will live to regret it. When I need you I will retake control, so don't wander off too far." And with that, she felt his hold on her diminish, though his presence was still there. Looking down, Winter saw she was still in her ripped dress and sighed. Loki could sense her hesitation to leave, "What do you want," he growled. "I want to know why you won't just let me help you, I don't have to be under your control to fight by your side," Winter requested shyly, not wanting to provoke him to believe controlling her was necessary. "It's easier when you are under my control, you do exactly what I want. It's sharper, cleaner." Winter scoffed, exasperated, "But I can't fight using my own techniques! And trust me, I would be of much more use fighting my way. You can control me, but you have yet to tap into my powers, just think of how much better it would be if I could use them during a fight!" She waited anxiously for his response, which took longer than it should have. "Would you prefer it if I retook control right now?" Uhm excuse me? "No thank you." Winter replied, reigning in her anger before briskly leaving the room, letting her form slip away painfully, before running back to her room. Stopping outside her door, she looking down the hall to make sure she was alone before going in. Shutting the door behind her, she let her form slip back, slumping against the door. "Well that's new." She jumped, head whipping up to see Phil standing next to her bed. Winter didn't say anything, just staring at him, eyes wide. "What else are you hiding from me?" Phil asked, he looked disappointed. Winter looked away, heart beating out of her chest, before answering "I don't know what you're talking about." Phil sighed, "Winter don't do this, don't shut me out. I just saw you sneak back in. Also, I'm assuming that you were invisible a second ago, so if you hid that power how do I know that there aren't more? Just tell me what else you can do, and why you haven't told me before." Oh gosh, time for the theatrics, although it wasn't really acting when Winter felt her eyes begin to burn, fighting back tears. "I was scared, I thought that you would use me." Not completely untrue. Phil just shook his head "Why would I do that?" "Because, if I'm really powerful you would make me work for you and do whatever you needed because I was convenient." Winter let out really fast, the words tumbling out almost incomprehensively. "Winter that's not true, I would have nurtured your powers and encouraged you to use them, but I would never have forced you into anything," he hesitated, "What else can you do?" Winter sniffled before answering "Well other than invisibility and telekinesis, I can teleport, and control people's minds." Phil looked shocked, "But wouldn't it hurt you? Not using these powers for so long? Or did you just use them without me knowing?" "I would use them when it was safe, but only to exercise them." Phil looked at her with suspicion, "This doesn't explain where you were, and why you're in a torn dress." Winter looked down at what she was wearing, "I went to try and stop Loki." "Why?" Phil asked and Winter looked back up at him, "I wanted to show you guys that I can be of help" Phil motioned to her dress, "How did that go? Neither Tony, Steve, or Natasha saw you" "I approached him inside the party, I didn't even know who I was looking for, and by the time I realized who he was, he had already attacked. I came at him, we fought, he hurt me so I teleported away, I feel so stupid now." Phil walked towards her, arms open for a hug, and Winter complied, "It's okay Winter, I understand, it's your first time out of the base and you were excited to prove yourself. I'm just glad you didn't get hurt." Guilt coursed through Winter, Phil cared about her so much and she was lying straight to him. He pulled back a bit and put a hand on her cheek, seeming to check her eyes. "What are you doing?" She asked. "Nothing, I was just checking something." he smiled, relieved, before continuing "Look, get some rest, tomorrow could be a long day." Winter smiled as Phil walked towards the door, saying goodbye, and shutting it behind him.
Sighing, Winter went to sit on her bed. Closing her eyes, she rested her head in her hands. She didn't know what Loki had planned for her, but she knew it couldn't be good. What a mess. It felt horrible lying to Phil, and she had hoped when he learned of her other powers, she would have been admitting everything. It will be an even bigger mess when he finds out about Hydra. Just don't let him find out. Grudgingly, Winter got up and stripped herself of her weapons, her USB, and her dress. She pulled a new combat suit out of her bag, and laid it out on her bed before deciding to take a quick shower. And by quick I mean 30 minutes. After, she took the time to brush out the knots in her hair. Thinking back, she was filled with anger at what had happened. If he had asked nicely I would have helped him, but no, he had to completely take over my body. I couldn't even fight my way, everything was his way. Even when I offered to help him willingly, he declined. Ugh men. Finally, she emerged from the washroom, dark hair in damp waves. She pulled on her suit, putting her dagger and USB back in their designated places. Closing her eyes, she rested her head in her hands. She didn't know what Loki had planned for her, but she knew it couldn't be good.
Becoming restless, Winter felt confined by the walls of her room and decided she needed some breathing room. With a new energy formed through her frustration, she walked down the halls furiously, losing track of where she was going. She had turned so many corners that she doubted she could find her way back without assistance. As she walked by an open door, she stopped at the sound of girls giggling. No way. Leaning against the wall, she listened as there were familiar hushed whispers and more giggles. Winter peeked through the doorway, eyes landing on the three girls sitting around a table in the middle of the room. "I think he's super cute Megan! If he had asked me out, I would have said yes in a heartbeat!" Winter smiled huge, the anger from the past hours slipping away completely. "Of course the only thing you're thinking about are his looks. Believe it or not Dianna, there is more to a man than his face." More laughter. "Of course, their bodies are amazing!" At this Winter let out a laugh, and all three girls whipped around. There was a moment of blank surprise, before they all squealed and jumped out of their chairs, all at different levels of excitement. They all rushed forward to greet her, wrapping her up in a messy attempt at a group hug. The only friends Winter had at the base, these girls meant more to her than anything. She hadn't seen them in weeks though, and had missed them horribly. She took them in, each detail coming alive again from her memories. The first was Natalie, with shoulder length brown hair, a single blond streak running down from behind her neck. Her face was angled, jaw prominent, and she was wearing a standard combat suit. She had been training to become a field agent, and had graduated just over a month ago. Second was Dianna. She had long reddish-brown hair that she wore in a loose braid. She had a thin face and cheekbone definition to die for. She was wearing a nurse's uniform, and had graduated to become a nurse about a month ago. Finally there was Megan. Megan had a slim angled face as well, and her hair was short. Really short. Like "It used to be past my shoulders and then I cut it without telling Winter" short. It stuck out in random directions, and she loved it. She was wearing a white lab coat, so she must have graduated from her program to become a Doctor! Winter had been close to all three girls, but seemed to connect more with Megan, especially since she specialized in neuroscience. Since the Corhtexiphan had effected Winter's brain, and brains were Megan's thing, they had gotten along very nicely. Megan constantly ran harmless tests on her to try to understand what had happened. Overall she understood Winter better than any of them. Coming back to the present, Winter pulled herself out of their grasp, beaming at all of them. "Megan! Your hair!" Megan smiled sheepishly, "Surprise!?" "I love it!" "You should." Oh jeez. Winter turned to Natalie and Dianna, addressing everyone, "So how are you guys? I know it's only been a month but it feels like forever since I've seen you!" Natalie responded first, "It has been forever! We've all been so busy, being new to our individual areas of work, but I've loved it." Dianna chimed in, "Yeah it's been so amazing, but I've really missed you. With Natalie already having a steady boyfriend and Megan, well you know how she is, I haven't had anyone to express my feelings with!" Megan looked exasperated, "Look, I listen to you when you rant but I don't know what you want me to say!" Winter laughed as Dianna rolled her eyes, "I don't know! Maybe 'Yeah he is hot!' or 'You're right, that is a very nice butt.'" They all laughed but before anyone could respond there was a huge crash and the carrier lurched. All four girls were thrown against the wall, Dianna falling onto her knees. Winter quickly helped her up, before running to the doorway and looking down the hall for any commotion. She felt something in her mind move uncomfortably. Oh no... "Are you ready?" She heard Loki ask in her mind. What do you think, you piece of "What was that?" Winter heard Megan yell, interrupting her mental assault. "I have no idea," Winter replied, and started running. She only took a few steps before she felt her mind hijacked yet again by Loki, and her footfalls slowed. She could see the girls stop too, asking her what was wrong. "Nothings wrong" Winter felt herself smirk, before teleporting to the lab where Banner had been doing research on the scepter. Oh no. When she got there, everyone was gone. Why is it unguarded? She quickly grabbed the scepter, and teleported back to where she had left her friends. When she reappeared they jumped, being unaware of her other abilities, and upon seeing the scepter their eyes widened. Dianna turned and ran down the hallway, but Natalie didn't hesitate to attack. Coming at Winter, she was stopped by the scepter, which had been placed over her heart. She immediately stiffened, eyes going completely black before her irises turned a brilliant shade of blue. Is that what i look like? Winter was drawn from her thought as she felt herself spin around. She saw Megan coming at her, doubt hiding under a mask of confidence. Before she could even make a move, Winter felt herself lift the scepter, taking over Megan's mind as well. Turning around, she saw that Natalie had retrieved Dianna, who was staring at all three of them with wide eyes. She looked like she was going to cry, "Please Winter, I'm just a nurse, i wont be of any help to you." She pleaded, and Winter wanted to cry. She knew what they were going through, wished she could stop it. Her arm lifted, the scepter taking another person's free will. Apparently finished, Winter continued walking down the hall towards Loki's cell, her three friends following behind her.
When she reached the room, it was Thor in the cell, not Loki. The trickster himself was standing by the controls, "Are you ever not going to fall for that?" Winter knew what he was going to do, and using all of her strength, she mentally attacked the barrier Loki had around her mind. She saw him flinch, and tried again. At this he stalked over, grabbed her by the neck and slammed her against the wall. There was nothing she could do, and Loki ripped the scepter from her grasp. He looked over his shoulder at Thor, before grabbing her arm and hauling her over to the controls. He could have easily made her walk over, so the dragging was for dramatic effect. Princess. Loki glared at her, before growling out, "I told you what would happen if you fought me". Winter felt her arms reaching up towards the controls, pushing a few buttons. She heard the hiss of a hatch opening, the rushing sound of wind. No! She was looking right at Thor, who was banging Mjiolnir against the glass, shouting "Winter stop! I know Loki is controlling you, but you can push him out of your head! You can stop this!" Winter tried one more time, pushing against the block in her mind. She heard Loki roar, and kept pushing. She was just making progress when she heard a voice challenging Loki. Phil. She hadn't heard him enter, and immediately stopped fighting against Loki, fearing for his safety. The thought had just appeared in her mind when Loki reappeared behind Phil, shoving the scepter through his chest. NO! Winter mentally screamed. She threw a fit, waves of rage and anguish flowing through her body, aching to be released. Letting it out with a roar, she felt Loki's hold on her shatter, and he fell to his knees. Winter ran over to Phil, pulling him into her lap and holding both sides of his face, searching his eyes. She felt a connection she hadn't before, and could feel his emotions, his pain, his thoughts. They all passed through her mind within a split second, and she had somehow caught all of it. Her eyes snapped open, she hadn't realized they were shut. She was shocked, "You knew... You knew that I was working for Hydra. Why did you let me stay?" Phil sighed, drawing in a deep breath, using all his energy just to answer, "I saw goodness in you, so much potential. I also saw how much you loved us, that when the time came you would make the right decision." Winter was crying, "Please don't die Phil, you can't die!" Before he could answer, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Turning, she saw Megan, hair whipping around wildly, slam a hand down on the controls, sending Thor out of the helocarrier. Winter let out a scream, whipping around trying to find Loki. She saw him still on his knees, holding his head and staring at Megan. Winter stalked over and grabbed him by the hair, forcing him to look up at her. Before she could do anything else she felt intense pain blossom at the base of her skull as someone hit her with the butt of their gun. She fell to the ground as the world went black. Loki got to his feet slowly, taking his time standing up. With Winter out of the way he was able to regain control over everyone else. Except Barton, he had lost Barton. Picking up Winter's unconscious form, he carried her out of the room, his agents following behind.