The Scarlet Witch: The Enemy of the Nexus

Not a single member wakes up until well into the next day. Their bodies desperately needed the rest. Although the Nexus beings cannot get as drunk as they had the night before with normal alcohol a mortal being were to consume, the beverages you provided the Nexus were not made for any mere mortal. In fact, the few Nexus that are on the team that wanted the challenge got wasted off of a sip of the stuff. 

Luckily, none of the Nexus are tired or hungover. In fact, they haven't been this energized and alert since the failed recruiting mission. Since they began to  only live and breathe training. Since they were too afraid to sleep, not wanting to witness another one of themselves dying. Since they lost most of their simulations. 

You and Wanda are among the last few to come out of their rooms. With your night being the only one interrupted, you and your wife are the only ones tired. You want to warn them. But figured it was no use. They know what they signed up for.  You don't need to remind them of what’s at risk. 

Everyone greets the two of you with suspicious smirks, taking notice of your late arrival and tired eyes. You shake your head at Thor and Carol for their insinuating brow raises as you take your seat next to Wanda. Though they weren't wrong, they didn't need to know that. Wanda leans her head on your shoulder and you wish the two of you were safely at home, snuggling on the couch, watching some bad reality show. But you can’t dwell on that too much. It was just another reason to fight to win. 

“Alright, team,” Raven claps her hands as she starts the meeting. She has everyone pay attention to a monitor playing the last unsuccessful run through of the plan. You make notes of actions you could have done better and mark a few things down of your teammates as well. But, you keep most of your focus on yourself because at the end of the day, that’s the only person you need to worry about making mistakes. 

A loud explosion outside catches everyone’s attention. Raven stops the stream and looks around the room. “Where’s Jean?” She looks at the faces around the room as she realizes she hadn’t noticed her friend's absence. Another loud explosion has most of the people in the room running to the nearest window to find the source. 

“It’s the cannons I set up to warn us of her arrival,” Vision says, still sitting in his seat. “She’s here.” He rises and scans the room for his device. “Raven,” he pulls out the broken device from where it had been hidden after being destroyed. 

“What is that?” You ask as you look at the odd object in the robot's hand. 

“Where the hell is Jean?” Raven shouts as she makes it across the room before Carol stops her. 

“We’ll send someone to find her, but right now, we need you to lead us,” Carol says with both hands on the woman's shoulders. 

Raven shakes her head, “You don’t understand, I need to find her. Before she does something stupid.” 

“I’ll go find her,” Carol volunteers, she wastes no time in running out the door and starts the search for the Phoenix. 

Raven clears her mind, she couldn’t let herself get stuck on what Jean possibly did. For all she knows, a few of the Asgardians found it and played with it like it was a toy. It couldn’t have been Jean. She wouldn’t do that. Right? Another cannon goes off and it springs the shapeshifter into action. “Vision, get the forcefield ready. We want her trapped with us as much as possible.” 

“Already on it, once she is in the perimeter, it will activate,” Vision confirms. 

“Thor, get your army outside and ready to fight,” Raven turns to the God. He marches out of the room to get his people to the frontlines. “Everyone else, get in your positions. You know what you need to do.” 

You look at Wanda and swallow hard. This is why you had the nightmare last night. It wasn’t a warning to quit. It was a warning of her arrival. Wanda squeezes your hand, knowing exactly what was on your mind. You aren’t ready for this. It can’t be happening. The Scarlet Witch can’t be here already. What had kept her away this long? Why did it have to be today?

Carol returns on her own with wide eyes, “Okay, don’t be alarmed–”

“Where is she?” Raven shouts.

“She wasn’t in her room, I couldn’t find her anywhere,” Carol admits. 

The blonde woman shuts her eyes, there wasn’t time for this. They had to continue on without her. Trust that she would pull through. Trust that her friend knew what she was doing. “We have to go on without her. Simon,” she summons the Wonderman forward. “Do you think you can take Jean’s position?” 

“Yes ma’am,” then he hesitates, his skill set isn’t Jean's, he might not be able to cover her position properly. But there wasn’t time to go looking for her. He had to step up. 

“Good, now go. We don't know how much time we have to execute the plan,” as Raven says this, there is a massive explosion outside that shakes the building. “Vision,” she turns to the synthezoid rapidly typing away on his supercomputer. 

“She obliterated one of the cannons,” he informs. “We have to move fast.” 

With his superhuman speed, Simon runs out of the building and goes to the position that he knows. Doing what he trained for. Not remembering how vital Jean’s role was in his part. With Jean missing from the lineup, the Scarlet Witch sweeps away most of the Asgaurdian army with a deadly wave of her hand and lands right in front of Wonder Man. The man keeps a strong stance, preparing himself to go against everything he believes. Everything he once knew in his heart. He never hurt the Wanda he knew, and to have to hurt this woman felt wrong. She tilts her head with a smirk, hearing the battle in his mind. She knows about the love he once shared with her variant. Knows how heartbroken he was when she ultimately left him. 

Simon raises his fists, preparing to emit an ionic energy blast. The purple energy glows in bright strings, wrapping around his arms and meeting full force at his knuckles. His eyes glow as he winds up and pushes his fist out. She stops his punch with her hand causing him to break every bone in his. The man hasn’t felt this sort of pain since he gained his powers. Part of his abilities is that he heals rapidly, but something she must’ve done prevents that from happening. She towers over him as he falls to the ground after facing the full force of his own power blast. 

There are weapons and arrows being flung and fired at the Scarlet Witch, but she pays no attention as they are unable to pierce her skin. They either break or bounce off of her magic shield. Those that bounce off impale a few of the  soldiers causing them to drop. Simon starts to crawl backwards away from the Scarlet Witch, almost pleading for his life. The corrupted woman takes delight in watching him struggle. She lifts him up by his throat. The red and black wisps of energy wrap tightly around his throat closing his airways. 

Simon tries to fight against her but everytime he exhibits any kind of power, it weakens him. The Scarlet Witch prolongs the man's suffering as the black magic penetrates through his skin and fills his blood with a poison that paralyzes him and his abilities as she drains him of his energy. 

Thor flies in her direction, intending to knock her over with his hammer as he has done many times with enemies bigger than her and seemingly stronger. Except she is much stronger than she appears. While she lets her magic focus on Simon, the Scarlet Witch turns her attention to the God of Thunder just as fast as he was coming at her. She catches the top of the hammer at the palm of her hand, shocking the man that has never witnessed anyone with the capability. Before he can question her, lightning that is coursing through her the way it does him shoots out and destroys his hammer. Creating a massive blast that would throw him into the woods but instead his back hits the forcefield that Vision was successful in activating. 

What's remaining of Simon's body falls to the ground at the same moment Thor hits the ground and is knocked out from the impact. The Scarlet Witch grins as the army stands before her, ready to put up their best fight against her. Instead of killing each one of them with a snap of her finger or the bat of an eye, she instead raises the dead members and has them fight against the alive ones. The new zombies charge against the living army with a new strength stemming from the Scarlet Witch herself while she progresses further towards the building.  

Ghost Rider blocks her path next with a blazing wooly mammoth. He knocks over her undead army, but not the Scarlet Witch herself. She tilts her head ready to face him and his mammoth head on. 

From the window, seeing the effortless damage that the Scarlet Witch was causing you began to panic once again. You thought you could be okay fighting this with Wanda by your side, but you couldn’t. Not this time. You couldn’t gamble her life away like you almost had in the past. Grabbing the device you had arrived here with, you take Wanda and pull her to the side. “You have to go, now! This isn’t up for debate anymore.” You try to set the device to your universe but with the adrenaline pumping through your veins it was hard to remember what number you were. 

Wanda pulls her arm out of your grasp, “N-no, I'm doing this with y—”

“Wanda, listen to me!” You cut her off desperately and grab her shoulder. She needed to hear you, this time you wouldn’t let her stubbornness win. “I can't lose you, do you understand?” 

“I-I can't…” the words get stuck in your throat as she tries to argue but with the urgency in your voice and fear in your eyes, she can hardly get a sentence together. 

“Please, take this, and go home,” you grab her hand and place the device in her hand. Turning it on and making the platform appear for her. 

Before she goes, she gives you a desperate kiss. To remind you of everything you have to live for. Remind you of what will be waiting for you on the other side. To tell you everything there isn’t enough time for. “I'll see you soon,” she says as she takes a step back onto the platform. A loud explosion takes your attention away from the last sight you might have of your wife. You run off to throw yourself into the battle.

Making it into the building after slaughtering her way through, the Scarlet Witch searches for her target. This was the worst case scenario for the team. Jean is still nowhere to be seen, Raven is running around looking for her, you are hiding in the area you were meant to be if she made it inside the institution, Carol is next at the frontlines and Vision is still managing and protecting all of the devices. Storm thought a way to keep the Scarlet Witch occupied was to have the ground beneath her concave causing her to be in a twenty foot deep sinkhole. Ororo was an addition to the undead army before Scarlet Witch even made it out of the hole. Charles tried to reason with the woman that once was, but with no luck the demon that was taking over swiftly snapped his neck from inside his mind. Wolverine couldn't get close enough when he charged forward with his adamantium claws out. She made the metal inside of him melt, poisoning his bloodstream much faster than its initial course. Just for safety measures, she then manipulated the metal inside of him to form back into a solid state and expand until every piece of metal was ripping through his skin and bones. When it was clear there was no sign of life in him, she continued on. Thor met an unlucky fate when he attacked her from behind. She spun around and this time instead of going for the hammer, she went for his throat. She pulled his head off as easily as one would with a doll and crushed it like a soda can. 

Captain Marvel surprises her with a side attack. She wastes no time in punching her the entire way to the ground. Once the Scarlet Witch hits the ground, Carol digs her head into the hardwood floors. Tearing apart the wood and making a destructive path until the Scarlet Witch has enough and red energy bursts from her sending Carol flying off of her. 

“Evil does not suit you, Maximoff,” Carol rises from where the blast had sent her flying into a wall. She rolls her neck and shoulders as she gets ready to go head to head with the redheaded woman again.

The woman is impressed with Carol’s will to continue to fight but is annoyed by her observation. The Scarlet Witch thought this woman's interpretation of evil suited her very well. She enjoyed her current position, finally she was close to having it all without losing it ever again. “It appears that you don't know me very well,” Wanda says as she quietly beckons a vehicle from the parking lot with her magic and takes slow intimidating steps towards Captain Marvel.  

Although she can see the physical resemblance, Carol does not recognize this woman at all. She could be seen as broken beyond repair but Carol had to try. She had to prove herself wrong. Her life depends on it. The universe depends on it. “Wrong,” she starts in a strong tone. “You're my best friend,” her voice softens to appear genuine, but is still confident. Certain that this is the same person she knows and that she could bring her back to who she once was. Find the reasoning in her. Find her friend Wanda. 

This doesn’t make the Scarlet Witch think twice as she strikes her so-called friend with the first vehicle. “Good, then. It means you'll be easier to kill.” One vehicle after another tries to pin Carol down but none of them successfully hit her. Which bores the Scarlet Witch. She was far too powerful to be wasting her time with destroying property to kill someone. She wanted a real fight. So, after the last car is incinerated by the Captain, the witch makes a deadly rope of magic and swings it at her. Carol is thrown off with the first swing and barely dodges it. However, it does cut through the fabric on the suit of her shoulder and burn her skin. The second time Scarlet Witch swings, Captain Marvel catches the rope and sends a powerful photon blast through it. Sending the other woman clear across the hall. 

Scarlet Witch rises with a sinister smirk. “Game on,” she whispers as she hovers in the air. Carol mimics this and floats in the air as well. The two stare at each other with glowing eyes and angry glares before they both charge forward. Their fists charge up with as much energy as they can handle to use. When they meet in the middle it causes a massive explosion that destroys part of the building. The two women that have been blown away from each other are both buried under the contents of the structure. 

Carol makes it out first and tries to locate the Scarlet Witch before she can get out. Unfortunately, she wasn’t careful with her step and a hand with blackened fingertips shoots out and pulls her back under the rubble. The Scarlet Witch tries to tap into Carol’s mind and convince her that she is drowning. But the helmet on her prevents anyone from breaking into her mind. It was a gift from her best friend, to protect her. 

From his control room, Vision finds Jean running in from the garden and with the communication program he connects to Raven’s earpiece to inform her. The shapeshifter cannot be bothered as she holds her breath waiting to see if Carol is another one of the Scarlet Witch's victims or not. 

She fills with relief as the witch is thrown out with the Captain flying up with her glowing fist ahead of her. She knows that she shouldn't run in. She knows she should find Jean. But she can't just stand here and watch and hope for the best outcome. Seeing as Carol is the only one fighting, the odds weren't in their favor.  Thinking on her feet, Raven transforms herself into a version of Pietro Maximoff that she was familiar with. Not aware that he wasn't an identical variant. 

“Wanda! Please, stop!” Raven calls out in Peter’s voice. The witch pauses in crushing Carol's throat. She looks over and tilts her head at the new presence. “You don't have to keep doing this!”

The Scarlet Witch drops the gasping body to the ground. Carol coughs up blood as she catches her breath. “Why should I stop?” The woman asks as she glides closer to Raven. 

“Because, sister, I'm begging you to,” Peter pleads desperately. 

The Scarlet Witch casts her eyes down with a sorrowful expression. “I’m so sorry,” she starts as she gets closer to the man. “That you think I would fall for your silly tricks,” she raises her hand out before her and chokes Raven with her deadly strings of magic. Razor sharp spikes penetrate the shapeshifter's skin in order to control her abilities to reveal her true form.  “I should thank you though, for doing the hard work for me. You would not believe how difficult it is to find one Nexus Being let alone six of the most powerful.” 

“Please,” Raven chokes out as she begs for her life. She manages to catch Carol's eye and the Nexus finds the strength to get up again. She charges her fists, ready to break Raven free. 

“Oh alright,” the Scarlet Witch sighs, “I won't make you suffer.” Without so much as a twitch of her fingers, she orders her magic to twist Raven's neck.

“NO!” Carol shouts as she tries to stop the woman but it's too late. By the time she reaches them, all she can do is catch Raven's body before it hits the ground. “I’m so sorry,” Carol says through her tears as she holds the cold blue body in her arms. She doesn't have any time to mourn as she is quickly reminded of the goal. Kill the Scarlet Witch. She lifts her head to glare at her target with glowing eyes as she prepares her body to exert every ounce of her powers as possible. 

Carol lets the body fall as she rises and takes steps towards the witch. Screaming at the top of her lungs she launches all of her power at the redheaded woman. Vision drops in behind the witch to help Carol weaken her. Unfortunately, while it does harm the Scarlet Witch, she was able to more easily absorb their powers until it was just her standing with two more bodies added to her count. Leaving you and Jean as the last to put an end to this once and for all. 

“Finally,” she says breathlessly as you and Jean arrive at the same time.“All of this,” she gestures to the destruction, “Could have been avoided if the two of you weren't so damn hard to find.” You clench your jaw and glance at Jean, believing it could have been avoided had she not done something and gone missing. You still weren't certain if she was the reason why the enemy had arrived when she did. But you know that her hiding away when she was an important part of the plan is her fault entirely.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jean asks. 

The Scarlet Witch doesn't waste time with words. She tests out her new abilities by hitting Jean with a photon blast. Luckily, Jean is able to deflect it with a forcefield of her own and strike back with a power blast of her own. The Scarlet Witch redirects it to you and you manage to catch it and charm it so that it only hits the enemy. When it does, she is unable to absorb it and is knocked down for a second. 

The three continue to fight while Wanda hides behind one of the few remaining walls in the destroyed area of the building. She is struggling to figure out where she can insert herself into the fight where it will be most effective. She only has one shot at this. She isn’t nearly as strong and powerful as the rest of her team was. But she is hoping none of that matters in the long run. She takes a step forward to jump at her more powerful variant as she is currently being pinned down by you and Jean. 

Then suddenly, everything goes dark.