Two of a Kind | Wanda Maximoff

Chapter 41: Thanos

The entire air in Wakanda changed. It was strange and...eerie. The wind picked up and blew through the trees, ruffling the branches almost aggressively. Wanda knelt by Vision, confusion and fear evident on her face at his words. Claire stood by looking in all directions, trying to pin down her enemy. Thanks to her enhanced senses that she got from her wolf, she could sense that they were near, but she couldn't pinpoint where they were. It was like they were playing with the blind spots of her senses. She let out a low growl as the eerie air unnerved her and she stepped closer to Wanda, ready to protect her at a moment's notice. Steve reached up and touched his comm as he extended his shields.

"Everyone, on my position. We have incoming." The rest of the Avengers and Okoye and T'Challa soon moved in, standing ready.

"What the hell?" Natasha asked as blue and black clouds appear out of nowhere a few yards from where they're standing. The clouds multiply and grow until they open, revealing a portal, and a hulking purple figure stepped through, a slight victorious smile on his face.

"Cap. That's him," Bruce said from behind him. Thanos looked at the small group of heroes that banded together to stop him, his smile not going away. He was dressed in minimal armor with a gold gauntlet on his left hand. In the gauntlet sat five multicolored stones, a sixth empty hole glared at them; he just needed one more stone.

"Eyes up. Stay sharp," Steve said to his team as they charged at him. Bruce was the first to reach him, but Thanos raised his left fist, igniting the power of the Space Stone to send him phasing into a rock wall, freezing him in place. Steve is blasted away by a mass of purple energy. T'Challa, dressed in his Black Panther suit charged with kinetic energy, leaped into the air, claws extended, but is easily grabbed by the throat by Thanos and slammed into the ground by a punch, violently releasing the energy he had stored. Sam swooped in, firing at Thanos, but soon fell to the ground as Thanos rendered his wings to rubber.

Vision grabbed Wanda's hand, pulling her attention to him. His eyes held sorrow and fear and Claire's heart broke for him and for Wanda.

"Wanda, it's time," he said.

"No."

"They can't stop him, Wanda, but we can. You have the power to destroy the stone."

"Don't."

"You must do it, Wanda, please. If he gets this stone, half the universe dies." Wanda looked at Vision with sadness in her eyes and she turned back around towards the advancing Thanos. Wanda, not seeing any other way, finally gave in. She held out she hand took a deep breath, conjuring her magic, and let the growing scarlet beam flow from her hand and into the Mind Stone. Vision gasped a little at the aggressive nature of her magic but tried to relax for Wanda's sake. He didn't want her to think she was hurting him.

Rhodey had now joined the fight and began firing at Thanos, though he created a shield around him, and used the Space Stone to crush Rhodey's armor and send him hurtling to the ground. Bucky came running from the tree-line, firing his machine gun and giving a battle cry. Thanos used the Power Stone to punch him away. Okoye threw her spear at him, but Thanos stopped it inches from his face with the Power Stone and knocked her down and wrapped Natasha in inescapable bounds of earth. Groot yelled and shoved his hands into the ground, forcing roots to grow and circle around Thanos, but he easily broke through.

Claire watched as Thanos decimated their team, the strongest the planet earth had to offer, and she let out a little whine. She turned towards Wanda, nuzzled her nose into her neck and gave her one last kiss before she turned to face off Thanos. She stood tall, letting the rage that Thanos made her feel envelope her until she saw red. She charged at the Mad Titan, her paws beating hard against the ground furiously. She roared at him as her anger built, fueling her strength.