"She misses you very much," Baron Strucker said with a pleasant smile.
"I know you do too, don't you?"
"Hand it over," Strucker added, making a casual gesture, "and you'll be free to reunite."
"Of course. This is what you want."
Pietro tossed the lead-lined case toward him.
Strucker caught it effortlessly and opened it at once.
Inside, the pure blue V compound lay quietly, radiating a faint, ghostly glow.
He shot a look at Dr. List standing nearby.
The doctor stepped forward, carefully removing the sample. Using an ultra-fine dropper, he extracted a tiny amount and fed it into a precision analyzer.
"Beep—beep—beep—"
The seconds stretched unbearably long.
Then—
"Energy signature confirmed."
The doctor turned around, fanatic excitement burning in his eyes.
"The molecular structure shows extraordinary bioactivity… Baron, it's authentic."
A flash of greed crossed Strucker's gaze.
"Excellent."
He stood up, smiling with satisfaction.
"You've proven your value, miracle child. Now—go reunite with your sister."
He pressed a button. A side door slid open.
"She's on level B3."
Pietro didn't hesitate. He turned and left immediately.
As he passed the table holding the vial, his fingers twitched—then stilled.
Right now, Wanda came first.
…
B3 Level – Isolation Chamber.
A keycard beeped. The airtight door slid open.
Wanda looked up.
The moment she saw that silver figure, the caution in her eyes melted away.
"Pietro!"
She dropped the book and ran to him.
Pietro wrapped his arms around his sister, feeling her warmth, her heartbeat.
In that instant, every risk he'd taken was worth it.
"Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"
He pulled back, anxiously checking her.
"I'm fine," Wanda shook her head. "They just made me read… and run tests."
Then she looked at him nervously. "What about you? Are you okay? Did you finish the Baron's task?"
"Yeah. It's done."
He placed his hands on her shoulders, eyes steady.
"And I'm here to take you away."
"Go… where?" Wanda asked, confused.
"Listen, Wanda. I found a place. A home."
"A place with dignity. With freedom."
"And… a group of people. A little strange, but dependable."
"We don't have to hide underground anymore. We don't have to be Nazi lab rats."
"We can live freely, under the sun."
Wanda stared at him, uncertain.
"A place like that… really exists?"
"Trust me," Pietro said with a smile.
"You'll love it there."
She didn't know what Pietro had gone through this past year—but she saw the light in his eyes.
A light she'd never seen back in Sokovia.
"I trust you," Wanda nodded.
"Good."
Pietro let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
"Now I need to retrieve something."
"It's… borrowed. And I need to return it."
If he didn't bring the vial back, Antony might not say anything—but Pietro would never forgive himself.
And leaving that thing in Hydra's hands would be a catastrophe.
"Wait here. Two minutes."
He kissed Wanda's forehead.
"Whoosh—!"
A silver flash—and he vanished.
Using his memory of the base layout, Pietro avoided patrols and slipped back into the laboratory.
The blue vial sat in the center of the experimental platform.
No guards.
Too easy.
Every alarm in Pietro's head was screaming—but he had to gamble. And he trusted his speed.
He dashed forward, snatched the vial, and grinned.
"Hah. Baron—this thing's too valuable. I'll keep it safe for you."
He turned, ready to bolt.
BZZZ—!!!
The gravity field inside the room twisted violently.
Hexagonal energy nodes lit up across the floor.
Pietro felt as if thousands of pounds of lead had been poured into his legs.
"Argh!"
Caught mid-speed by the gravity trap, he slammed into the floor. The vial flew from his hand.
"Ohhh…"
A calm, unhurried voice came from outside the room.
The laboratory doors opened.
Strucker entered with a squad of soldiers.
"I knew it," he said, looking down at Pietro sprawled on the floor like a broken dog.
"You street-bred mongrels can never be trained."
With a flick of his hand, a magnetic device activated, pulling the blue vial off the ground and into his grasp.
"You think you're fast?"
Strucker walked up to Pietro, who was pinned by the crushing gravity field.
"This is a gravity torque matrix—custom-built just for you."
"Let me go, you bastard!"
Pietro struggled violently, but couldn't even stand.
"I had hoped to turn you into Hydra's blade," Strucker said, shaking his head as his eyes turned cruel.
"But since you won't obey…"
"…then you'll make an excellent specimen."
"Your genes should be very valuable."
WOO—WOO—WOO—!!!
Suddenly, a piercing alarm echoed throughout the entire castle.
"Sir! Intruders detected!"
Strucker's expression changed. He glanced once at the trapped Pietro, then turned sharply.
"Secure him. I'll deal with this."
He left with his men.
The lab fell silent—leaving Pietro alone, pounding the floor in despair.
…
Twenty minutes earlier.
Sokovia. Hydra Research Base—an ancient castle built into the mountainside.
Icy winds howled, masking the sound of two figures touching down.
Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton, dressed in white snow camouflage, slid smoothly through the frost-covered forest.
"Two sentries. Three o'clock," Barton whispered, compound bow already drawn.
"Copy."
Natasha lowered her stance, using snowdrifts as cover, closing the distance.
"Whish—"
A silenced arrow pierced the left sentry's throat—no scream.
At the same time, Natasha exploded upward from the snow, wrapping her legs around the right sentry's neck.
Crack.
Both guards dropped.
Perfect coordination.
"Move."
They avoided main patrol routes and entered the castle through a ventilation shaft.
Inside, the design screamed cold, WWII-era industrial brutality—
thick cables, steel walls, and server lights blinking endlessly.
"Wait…"
As they passed a massive lab, Natasha suddenly stopped. She peered through the reinforced glass.
Below lay a huge containment zone.
Not cells—
individual transparent isolation pods.
Inside were young people.
Some slammed violently against the glass, scales spreading across their skin.
Others curled in corners, gravel and sand floating around their bodies.
A few stared blankly, eyes rolled back, muttering in unknown tongues.
"That's…" Barton frowned. "Enhanced?"
Natasha pulled out a decoder and slapped it onto the control panel. Seconds later, files scrolled across her wrist display.
As she read, her expression darkened.
"Damn it…"
"What is it?"
"These people…" Natasha pointed at the images.
"They're on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Avengers Expansion Initiative list."
"What?"
"A secret project Fury started after watching Vought's talent shows," she said coldly.
"He began cataloging individuals worldwide with superhuman potential—code name: Secret Warriors. They were meant to be Avengers reserves."
Her voice trembled with fury.
"And Hydra found them first."
--------------
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