Episode 92: Knowing the Enemy!

The next morning, Peter Parker and MJ came to the Novi Grad Church following the directions on the Sokovia City map they got at the hotel they stayed at last night. It was barely standing despite being a moderately sized building made of bricks with a metal gate surrounding the area to keep people out. Peter Quill was standing in front of the gate with Gwen Stacy beside him.

"Took you long enough," Gwen said, folding her arms. "I even got here before Quill did."

"I was busy trading Marémon with Gamora," Quill said.

"So how did you and Gamora actually meet?" MJ asked Quill. "Was it in the Westview Realm?"

"No, I actually met her when I briefly stopped in Xandar City," Quill explained. "She was looking for this weird orb that Starlure was carrying, and got in a Marémon Match with me for it. But I made a foolish bet and said I would take her Gamslay if she lost the match. She didn't take losing very well."

"I met up with him again in Sokovia City before the Anomaly happened, and Gamora was practically stalking him," Gwen said. "Then they became a couple in Westview, which made me sick and that's why I was always looking grumpy."

"Were you self-aware like me and MJ?" Peter asked Gwen.

Gwen rolled her eyes. "I was aware that something wasn't right, but I couldn't figure out why until Wanda undid the Anomaly. That girl should've been sent to Ryker's Island."

"But she had no idea she could use the Reality Stone the way she did," MJ pointed out.

"That just sounds like an excuse," Gwen argued. "She brainwashed everyone in this town, including us, and put us in danger because of her personal vendetta against SWORD for stealing her Marémon's boyfriend."

"She did save us from that other Witch, though," Quill said. "From what Wanda said yesterday, Agatha could've made things worse."

"Yet we didn't see Agatha using magic at all," Gwen said.

"I think she used magic to make MJ and Felicia more irritated than usual at the Halloween dance," Peter speculated.

"Why would she do that?" Gwen asked.

"Because she wanted to get me alone to tell me and the girls to comply with our roles in the Westview Realm or she would tell Wanda about our self-awareness," replied Peter.

"Peter could be right," MJ mumbled out loud. "I do remember feeling more irritated, and a part of me noticed the same thing with Felicia. But when we got to the shed, our irritations cooled down significantly before Wanda came and brainwashed us into meeting Peter at the diner."

Then the four heard screeching tires and looked to a bus that stopped near the church which Steve Rogers emerged from. He was wearing the same outfit he wore yesterday and during the Sakaar rescue mission, which was brown leather jacket over a blue plaid shirt and dark-blue jeans.

"Hey guys!" Steve greeted, but then he noticed everyone's sour looks. "Why the long faces?"

"I simply thought Wanda should've been sent to Rykers, but Miss Green Bean argued with me about it," Gwen said, glancing at MJ.

"My name is MJ, not Green Bean!" MJ snapped. "How would you like it if I called you Dumb Blonde instead of Gwen?"

Angered, Gwen reached for her PDB.

"Whoa! Take it easy," Steve said. "I'm sure Strange knew what he was doing when he decided to make Wanda his apprentice."

"Did he?" Gwen said doubtfully. "You weren't here when Wanda trapped us in Westview, making us say and do things against our will."

Sighing, Steve said, "You're right, I wasn't here. But whatever you experienced in Westview shouldn't prevent you from moving forward."

"But now my mind is conflicted. I'm not sure if what I experienced in Westview was real."

Steve paused. "Before Wanda and her brother joined me and the Avengers, they were sent on a covert mission by HYDRA to test their Marémon's capabilities. So while Pietro's Quickze distracted us with his lightning speed, Wanda used Witchlet to read our minds and expose our deepest fears. While we knew it wasn't real, it felt real to us. That's why Tony created Ultron, because Wanda showed him a vision of all his friends dying and he thought he could prevent it by creating the perfect Marémon. But as you all know, he was proven wrong."

A heavy silence fell over everyone as they looked up at the church since it was a grim reminder of Ultron's destruction.

"The point I'm trying to make is that we shouldn't let our minds be our worst enemy," Steve said, thumping his chest. "Your heart should be your guide."

"He's right," Peter said. "Our memories of the things we said and did in Westview are real, but they shouldn't influence our actions in the present."

"Plus our roles in that realm were assigned to us, not chosen," Quill added.

"So we can't blame ourselves for what we did since we had no control over our actions," MJ said, though she caught Gwen's envious stare. "Except for some of us."

"Besides, we have more important things to deal with," Steve interjected. "Now before we set out, I would like us to share our Marémon teams so I can gage your strengths and weaknesses in case we run into trouble."

"Like Team HYDRA?" MJ guessed.

Steve gave MJ a suspicious look. "You've run into them before?"

"We first ran into them in a park outside of Yortown, then outside of New Asgard Town, in Sakaar, and on the train to Xandar City," Peter admitted.

"How many members did you encounter?" Steve asked.

"Two of them, except for the first encounter when they brought some grunts," MJ said. "One was a computer-shaped Marémon called Ar-I, and he was assisted by a young man who was named White Wolf."

Hearing those names, Steve frowned. "Can you describe White Wolf?"

"He was…a little shorter than you, with medium brown hair," MJ answered. "A mask covered his face, his eyes were obscured by goggles, and he wore a black leather jacket."

"You're lucky to be alive," Steve remarked. "According to SHIELD intel, White Wolf is one of the deadliest Marémon-wielding assassins in this region. He is considered to be responsible for many high profile deaths including Tony Stark's father Howard, and once fought Natasha when she was an assassin-for-hire, which put her Marémon Salidow in critical condition."

To be continued…