I woke swinging, ready to tear apart an entity that couldn't be touched. The Darkness snapped out of me, trying to find somewhere to place the blame. And I had to remind myself that the Darkness was mine. That I was the one in control of it. And once I did, I let it drop, fading back into me so that no one had to get hurt.

That was pointless, however, since I appeared to have been locked up in my own room. Similar to the room they'd set aside for the split. I recognized the plexiglass wall and the taste of stale, filtered air. There were no more IVs. But I felt the pull of a bandage on the back of my head anyway. I jumped up, or tried to, and leaned against the bed to get better control over my muscles.

"Am I alone?" I asked since the plexiglass was darkened. Likely to give me a sense of privacy. But I could feel eyes on me. And a moment later, the color shifted until it was clear, showing me the inside of a viewing room. There were only two people present now. Liv and Sam, both watching me with untrusting eyes. "Where is he? Is he okay?"

"Barnes is alive," Liv informed me through the speaker.

"Why'd you do it?" Sam asked.

"It wasn't me. It was Jo,"I said. That was the moment I realized I wasn't entirely me."She was afraid. She thought I was trying to kill him. She panicked.She's lying." This time, it actually was me. Sam noticed the switch, and his head ticked to the side just a bit.

"Is that why you locked me up?"Chaos asked."Because you think I'm going to hurt him?"

"We locked you up because you threw Liv against a wall."

"It wasn't me. It was Jo. I don't know how she gained control like that. I was weakened, and she took advantage of it. She never wanted us to split in the first place.Are you okay? Did I hurt you?" Liv shook her head gently. "Is Bucky going to be okay?" Sam's eyes flickered again. She was using me to speak, but something must have tipped him off. Maybe just the shift in my tone. That one part of me argued that I was innocent, and the other only cared about their welfare.

"Barnes is recovering," Liv said. "He's improved since you—did whatever it is you did."

"Barnes doesn't have a concussion," Sam added with a nod. I poked at the back of my head. "What's going on, Chaos? Jo? Whichever one I'm speaking to."

"Chaos.Jo." I huffed in irritation. Or Chaos did. And he noticed that too.

"Both then," he decided.

"Seems that way."

"So, which one of you is lying?"

"Neither of us,"Chaos replied."Jo is just afraid. She didn't understand what was happening.She's lying.Shut up.She was trying to kill him." He looked at me. I wasn't sure what it was in his expression, but I knew his next words were for me. Not her.

"What do we do?" he asked.

"We keep going as planned,"she answered."I just want to go home. That's all. I'll leave this planet alone. I just want to go home.She kills to expand," I pushed out. Hoping to explain before Chaos retook control. "The other part of her is imprisoned.She's lying.She wants the Avengers. Either for their power or to get them to free her.I would never hurt the Avengers. I don't mean to hurt anyone.She's lying."

"What do we do?" he repeated.

"It's cosmic," I told him. "The prison is off-planet. We need someone with knowledge of off-planet prisons."

"The Guardians?"

"Don't be ridiculous. They're morons."

"Thor." I felt the flicker of fear in her. The one she tried to hide behind a scowl. I could feel her trying to regain control of me. But now that I knew the Darkness answered to me, pushing her out was more manageable. She was bigger than me. But she was a consciousness. The body was mine. The Darkness she was made from answered to me. And I could hold her back like a vicious dog on a chain. I just had to learn how to do it.

"She's afraid of him," I admitted. "I'm not afraid of him.You're afraid that he knows something.He's just as useless as the rest of them."I smiled at Sam, and though his expression hadn't changed, I could see he was aware of what was happening. He nodded once.

"I'll make the call."

"No, don't!"I leapt forward as if I could stop him through the glass, but it went solid black again. I pounded my fists against it."Let me out! She's lying! They'll kill me! I just want to go home!"I dragged my hands down the glass, and then I smiled.

"Is that fear, Chaos?" I asked.

"Shut up."