Quietus

mad world...

WHY AM I SO MEAN TO MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS?! Also, if it is in italics that means it is translated from Slovak, the language I am using for Sokovian. There is a lot to translate that would take away from the story so I felt it was easier to do this way.

The young woman sat in her cage, her straight jacket constricting her movements. The collar around her neck rubbing against the burns it left on her skin. She stared straight ahead, her expression cold. She heard footsteps approaching her containment chamber and allowed herself a small smirk.

Looks like they were letting her out to play.

"Witch. We have a target for you to eliminate." The door to her cage opened and in walked a man with beady eyes. Her handler, Vladimir. He dropped a file at her feet. "I am going to take off your jacket now. Try any of your powers on me and you know the consequence."

"I understand." Wanda muttered, barely flinching when the collar shocked her. She stayed still as Vladimir unfastened her jacket and slipped it off her, leaving her in her tank top and shorts. She picked up the file, ignoring the jolts from the collar as she leafed through the papers. "American. High profile. How much time do I have?"

"For this? We are factoring in travel and recon work, so one week." Vladimir took the papers back, tucking the file under his arm. "I will be going with you, of course. We leave for America in two hours. Come, we must prep you."

Wanda knew what that meant. They were going to weigh her down with power dampening chains and use her trigger phrase to make sure she complied with orders.

She followed Vladimir out of her cage and down the hallways to the prep room. A chair sat waiting for her. Wanda took her seat, allowing the shackles to be placed on her. She immediately felt her powers begin to lower from a boil beneath her skin to a dull simmer as more chains and shackles were added to her body. She kept her expression blank.

A woman came walking into the room with a piece of paper, holding it in front of her as she circled Wanda. "Loner. Replaced. Six. Dawn. Fury. Nineteen. Bloom. Hurricane. One. Field." Wanda felt her mind shift, as if someone else was talking the steering wheel. The woman stopped in front of Wanda. "Good morning, Witch."

"Ready to comply." She felt her mouth form the words and heard her voice speak but it was as if she was watching someone else pull the strings.

Wanda watched as they took the chains off of her, leaving only the collar around her neck. The woman, Nicoletta, came up to her, watching her intently as Wanda stood from her chair. "Go get dressed and meet Vladimir in the hangar."

Wanda nodded, walking off to go get dressed in her gear. A black long sleeve shirt with black pants and thigh high black boots, a thin red belt around her hips. A long red coat with a tall collar slipped over her shoulders. She put her emblem on her pants above her belt, a warped 'M' looking symbol. She tied her long hair up into a bun before walking towards the hangar.

Vladimir was waiting for her in the jet. She slipped inside, taking her seat. He started up the jet and they were on their way to America. Wanda looked out the window as they flew, slowly drifting off to sleep.

- - -

"I have the target in sight. Orders?" Wanda murmured, watching through her sunglasses as the man walked through the park with his security detail.

"You know your orders, Witch. Make it look like an accident." Vladimir replied.

Wanda lifted her newspaper, hiding one of her hands behind it as she kept an eye on the congressman. She aimed her hand at his chest, altering the probabilities of him going into fatal cardiac arrest to make it occur. She smirked when she saw him stumble and clutch his chest. His security detail immediately began to call for emergency services, one of them began giving him first aid as Wanda watched on, sipping her coffee.

"It is done." She announced when the EMTs arrived and pronounced the congressman dead at the scene. She threw her cup and newspaper out, making her way to the exit of the park. When she didn't get a response on where to meet within a few minutes, Wanda knew something was wrong. "Vladimir, what has happened? Answer me."

"I'm sorry, Vladimir is a bit busy answering for his crimes. As you will, Scarlet Witch, when we find you." A female voice replied with a an American accent.

Wanda stiffened. "Who are you? What have you done to Vladimir?"

"I am from SHIELD. And we are taking Hydra out, including Vladimir and you, Scarlet Witch." The woman replied again.

Wanda took note of how she never said her real name despite addressing her twice directly. She smirked. They had nothing on her. She could disappear.

Her smirk faltered after a moment. Vladimir had always been good to her. He didn't deserve whatever torture this SHIELD was going to put him through. Wanda cursed herself, making her way back to where she last knew Vladimir to be.

She kicked down the door, smiling when she saw Vladimir handcuffed in the corner and the place crawling with SHIELD agents. They turned when she entered, reaching for their guns. Wanda flicked her wrist at the first one to successfully draw their gun, the gun turning on its handler and shooting them in the head. The other agents went to fire but Wanda was too quick, snapping her fingers. The bullets turned around and buried themselves in the agents, the bodies falling to the floor.

Wanda stepped over them on her way to Vladimir. She crouched in front of him, placing her hands on his cheeks. "Vladimir, you are my first sorrow and regret."

"Do what you must, Witch." Vladimir kept his eyes on Wanda as she snapped his neck with her gloved hands.

"Stay where you are." Wanda tensed, turning slowly to see a red haired agent with her gun aimed on Wanda. It was the same voice from the phone. Wanda smirked. "You're coming with me, Scarlet Witch."

"You're going to have to catch me first, Black Widow." Wanda recognized her as one of the Avengers right away. She ran at the Black Widow, diving under her arm and out the door.

She sprinted down the street, using her powers here and there to make things fall over in the Avenger's path as she was pursued. Wanda laughed, heading for the subway station, she ran for a train, hopping on just as the doors were closing. She watched as the Black Widow pounded on the door of the train as it took off, Wanda pushing her way through the crowd to hop from cart to cart. At the next stop, she calmly walked off the train, grabbing a hoodie that was hanging loosely from someone's waist. She discarded her own coat and slipped the hoodie on, tugging the hood on over her head.

She blended with the crowds as she walked through the streets, seeing no signs of the Widow or any SHIELD agents for hours. Wanda pressed the comm unit in her ear that connected her to the main base in Europe, speaking with Nicoletta. "Vladimir is dead. He was compromised by SHIELD. Mission was accomplished, however. How do I proceed?"

"It is too dangerous to extract you now. We will put you up in a hotel. Get to a computer. We have another mission for you."