"It's gotta be her. I got a good feeling about this." Steve reread the words in the email after viewing the pictures attached, knowing Natasha had done the same many more times.
"What if it isn't? As much as I want to believe that, we can't just drop in blindly based on some stranger's message. This is one of many that we get every day."
"I understand, but...hear me out. Look at the background in each of these." Steve scrolled through the pictures again. "Manipulating our images is one thing, but no random stranger knows what our compound looks like on the inside to fake these many rooms this accurately. It can't be a coincidence."
"Yes, I thought of that. I looked at the data and the pictures were all taken from the same device. So, I tried to dig a little deeper." Natasha clicked away from the message to show Steve another window. "It pinged me to several locations in Brazil. I hadn't managed to narrow it down just yet. Whoever this person is, they know a thing or two about covering their tracks." Natasha sighed exasperatedly and wrapped her arms across her body as she leaned back in her chair. " We don't even know anybody with that name mentioned in the email."
"I know how ridiculous it looks but we haven't had any real leads on her until lately. And now that we have something—"
"We had more than a few 'somethings' all this while, Steve, but she made it clear she doesn't want to be found. Every time we get close, she disappears until the next time we find a trace of her. Then rinse and repeat."
"Are you giving up on her?"
"No! Never! Don't say that. I... There's not a day that I don't think about what else we could've done for her. She was lost back then, and then we lost her. I wish she knew how—"
Multiple notifications suddenly filled the monitor, alerting the two of several posts where 'The Avengers' was tagged. Natasha was about to clear them all away when a link with an odd caption caught her eye.
'Mulher estranha bate em Gabriel'
They shared a glance before Natasha clicked on the link, leading them to a saved livestream ending less than half an hour ago. At first, the video was shaky as the person recording ran towards a large house, joining a small crowd that had gathered on the street. The video panned to the dark, rainy sky. Waterdrops smudged the lens and Steve and Natasha could barely figure out what they were looking at. They scrolled forward and the video was now zoomed in on a few figures standing together. Some light was cast on them, thanks to the large hole by the side of the house. A tinge of recognition hit Natasha at the sight of one of the figures. Before the camera could focus on their faces, the video quickly panned away to a man on the ground.
She searched slightly further in the video in hopes that she could get a clearer view, but it was just a recording of the crowd discussing what happened. She wanted to listen in to see what other info she could get but decided to quickly scroll to the rest of the video before doing so. What she saw caught her attention right away. Steve quickly told her to pause the video. It was a frozen shot of a woman who appeared to be making her way through the crowd. She was trying to conceal her identity, seeing how she covered her face with her hand. But the slight hint of dark blue behind her fingers was unmistakable. Steve replayed the video at a slightly earlier timestamp as Natasha held her breath.
The woman walked towards the gates with her head down, moving the bent metal aside easily to step outside. The crowd from before started to gather around her and bombard her with questions. She kept her head low and tried to push through the crowd. When they didn't seem to let up, she raised her hand to cover her face. It would be easily missed by most, but Steve and Natasha knew exactly what they saw. A faint, dark blue glowed very briefly behind the woman's fingers and the crowd suddenly ignored her, slowly letting her walk by. The camera panned away from the woman, focusing on the house once more as the person recording continued to talk about a certain 'Gabriel' and 'Bernardo'.
Steve straightened up in his seat, releasing a breath he was holding in. He glanced at Natasha to check on her when he noticed how quiet she was.
"Where did you say that message was likely from again?"
"Brazil," Natasha replied briefly. She blinked hard when she noticed her vision getting blurry.
"That's good enough for me. I'm going. If that's her, which I'll bet my shield on is her—"
"Then we bring her back home."
"We bring her back home. Whatever it takes." Steve nodded. "We leave as soon as we can before her trail goes cold. Please get us set up. I'll try and call for some backup."
Natasha rushed to get things ready, noticing that it had been a while since she felt this hopeful. If there's a chance for them, now is the best time. Steve took out his phone and searched through his contacts for a name, and found it easily. It was someone he hoped would pick up, seeing how things had changed between them. He sends a quick message about the situation first, hoping it'll help his odds. Not long after, he tried calling the number as he walked towards his room to get ready. Just as he reached his door, the dial tone stopped. A sigh greeted him at the other end of the call and Steve smiled briefly with relief.
"This better not be a prank, Cap."
"Tony. It's her."
.
Lyssa turned restlessly in her sleep, the image of her bloody hands filling her mind. The thick, red liquid slowly pooled on her palms and dripped down by her feet, splattering onto her pants. As she watched the pool of red grow around her feet, smoke crept on the ground and slowly filled the air, making it harder to breathe. Lyssa turned around and was met with the aftermath of great destruction. Thick clouds of ashes and dust filled the air, accompanying the increasingly acrid smell of smoke. Lyssa could see remains of buildings and rubble littering the ground far away from her, but her immediate surroundings were reduced to scorched remains.
Lyssa was startled when pale figures rose from the ground surrounding her. They stumbled around looking lost, their faces carved in a seemingly permanent grimace of pain. The more Lyssa looked, the more of them she saw. They slowly turned their attention to her. Their eyes were bright blue at first but slowly turned dark before they burned bright red. Lyssa was frozen in place at the sight before her. They approached her slowly, murmuring something. She tried to run away but an invisible force held her in place, forcing her to stay though every fiber in her being was screaming for her to leave.
You're trying to run away again. We won't let you. You did this. Look. LOOK! LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE DONE. What you will keep on doing. What you were born and cursed to do. This is all your fault. If only you'd listened. DON'T YOU DARE LOOK AWAY, LOOK AT US! Are you happy? Was this what you wanted?
Lyssa covered her ears but the voices rang in her head as the figures came closer. She couldn't help but notice how some of those faces seemed distantly familiar to her. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to escape the horrifying sights. She trembled in place as the cacophony of voices filled her being. All at once the noise died down out of a sudden. Lyssa breathed in shakily, peering to see what happened. Her stomach dropped when she saw the figures disintegrating as they fell one after another. One last figure stood there staring at Lyssa—a woman with red hair flowing past her shoulders onto her dark red coat. The woman approached Lyssa and reached out to caress Lyssa gently on her cheek.
"I can help you. Let me in, moja láska. I can turn your nightmares into the sweetest dreams. I can show you that you're more than just these ruins. I'll be yours, and you'll be mine once again. Just let me in."
The woman moved closer, her red eyes glancing down at Lyssa's lips. She slowly pulled Lyssa to her, their lips inching closer. Lyssa woke in a cold sweat, gasping for air just as she felt their lips brushed lightly together. Her instincts told her something was wrong. Her eyes adjusted to the dark quickly as she sat up in bed trying to slow her breathing down. A movement in the corner of her eyes caught her attention. She jumped out of bed with her hands raised at the ready, her dark blue wisps flowing dangerously between her fingers as she studied the tall figure in the darkened room.
.
"Everyone's cleared off the area. Ready when you are."
"Alright. I'm moving in."
Steve unlocked the door and carefully stepped inside the dark room. His eyes rapidly scanned the interior before they landed on a single bed where someone was turning restlessly in their sleep.
"Is it her?" Natasha's voice nervously asked in his earpiece. A sliver of light from outside bled through the room's window, illuminating a part of the person's face. He felt a huge surge of relief and happiness go over him.
"It's her," Steve replied quietly. Despite his relief, he knew he couldn't let it distract him from the possible risks. He prepared the syringe gun and made sure that it was loaded and ready to go. "She's asleep. I'm moving closer." He was a few steps away when she suddenly sat up in bed gasping for air, her eyes wide open with fear. He could see how her chest rose and fell rapidly, accentuating how much thinner she looked, which pained Steve. He looked down at the syringe gun and gritted his jaw because he knew what he had to do. He approached her carefully with hopes that she hadn't noticed him, but she jumped out of bed, her dark blue wisps at the ready. He hid the syringe gun behind his shield and raised his other hand.
"Hey... Take it easy, Y/n. It's me. Steve." He took another step, watching her reaction closely.
"Stay back!"
"Okay," Steve nodded to assure her and stood in place. "It's been a while, kid. I'm here to bring you home. We missed having you around, Y/n."
"Who's Y/n? And who are you?" Lyssa asked, a hint of confusion flashing on her face. The expression was also mirrored on Steve's face when he realized her reaction and question were genuine. "Why would I go with you? You sound like every single one of them."
Steve frowned as he wondered what had happened. "I'm... I'm Steve. You're Y/n." He felt a little weird having to explain that to her. "Who's 'them', Y/n?" Steve watched as hurt and anger filled her eyes at his question. "These people—did they hurt you?"
"More like 'tried' to. Why? Are you going to do the same or are you going to let me leave?" Lyssa seethed as she felt the heat grow in her chest.
"Look. I don't know what happened but I'm not leaving without you, Y/n. You told me some time ago to come and find you. Well, I'm here now. We're here. Please, just listen—"
"I told you, I'm not Y/n. I don't even know you, and it sounds like you brought friends which I don't like the sound of. Leave. I won't repeat myself." Lyssa glared at Steve as her eyes glowed a dark blue. He gritted his jaw as an uncomfortable sensation crept into his head that slowly became painful.
"Steve! What's happening?" Natasha asked as her head was starting to hurt as well.
"She... She's making us leave again."
Lyssa was surprised to see the man still standing there. She considered the risk of pushing her limits, knowing very well what or who was waiting to take over as soon as she opened the gates. But seeing how resistant the man still was, she knew she had to try if she wanted a chance to escape. She added pressure, pushing back against the invisible barrier. To her surprise, it didn't take much before it started to relent to her. The man hissed sharply in response as Lyssa gauged his reaction, slowly walking to the door. "I'm leaving. I've done enough damage here."
Steve fought against the growing headache as Y/n headed to the door, determined to not let her disappear again. He raised the syringe gun, aiming it at Y/n's back. "Sorry kid," he whispered before he squeezed the trigger.
Lyssa was about to reach the door when she sensed the man's resistance to her grow. She heard him mutter something and turned around quickly when she felt a sharp sting in her right shoulder. Reaching to see what it was, she grew annoyed when she pulled a syringe out. "Really?! How original," she spat out, throwing the syringe to the ground before she turned to face the man again. "You're getting on my nerves, Steve." She shook her head, feeling worried when she started to get a little lightheaded.
"I told you..." Steve grumbled, noticing the pressure starting to ease off in his head which meant that the drug was working. "We're not leaving without you."
Lyssa noticed her vision starting to get blurry. Fuck! What was in that thing?! Her blue wisps collected in her palm and she shot a beam of energy at Steve. He quickly deflected it with his shield, redirecting the beam which bore through the wall of the room. Lyssa pulled back, not wanting any innocent civilians caught in the crossfire. The voices screamed at her, telling her to do whatever was necessary to escape if she didn't want to be captured again. She pushed them away and turned to run to the door instead.
"Now!"
Lyssa heard the man called out shortly before the door flew off its hinges forcefully with a blast, throwing her off her feet. Lyssa took some time to get up, seeing how hazy her mind already was. She stood up, wavering in place as a red-headed woman rushed in through the entrance. Lyssa saw the look of relief on the woman's face which confused her further. Her wisps returned and the woman's face changed.
"Don't," the woman said quietly. "Don't make me fight you."
Lyssa ignored what she said. Feeling faint, Lyssa raised her hand to attack. But before she could direct it at the woman, she felt herself being put into a chokehold from behind. She gasped for breath as she clawed weakly to escape, realizing that it was the man from before. He was much stronger than she thought.
"Do it, Nat," the man grunted, keeping Lyssa as still as possible. "She's still got some kick left in her, you have to do it!"
Lyssa watched as the red-headed woman studied her with a mix of emotions. The woman shot another syringe at her before firing a small device at her chest, the resulting zap nearly taking Lyssa's breath away. Lyssa felt the man's grip on her loosening as the woman approached. Why? Why does this keep happening? How many more times?! She fought against the drowsiness that loomed over her as the voices returned, pushing her to fight back. Lyssa pulled the device and syringe out of her. She kicked the woman, leveraging herself to break out of the man's hold on her and pushing him backward. Lyssa fought to control her wisps, using them to lift her attackers in the air.
"Tony! Now would be a good time for you to show up!" The man grunted.
A forceful blast from the wall behind Lyssa threw her off balance. She crumpled onto the ground amidst the broken wall pieces, her limbs almost too heavy to move. A flying robot-looking thing flew into the room and addressed her two attackers. Lyssa tapped into her rage as fuel, hopingthat it would be enough to at least get them off her back. She could see that they were distracted for the time being and decided to move.
She shot a beam at the robot which flung it back out of the room and flung the man away with her wisps. She rushed to attack the red-headed woman and they traded blows. Lyssa could tell that this woman was a very experienced fighter which worried her more. Where did they come from?! Despite how good the woman was, Lyssa could tell that she was holding back for some reason. She pulled her fist back to counter the woman's attack but found her arm being held back.
Lyssa realized that the man was holding her and trying to wrangle her into another chokehold. She tried hard to pull her arm away but felt a painful blow to her torso from the front from the red-headed woman. She threw a few quick hits to Lyssa's face and Lyssa tasted the metallic taste of blood in her mouth. She spat it out and tried to heal the wound. To Lyssa's surprise, she felt the woman's resolve faltering slightly after that. She took the chance to shove the woman back against a wall.
Lyssa quickly turned her attention to the man, letting him pull her arm back before turning on him and elbowing the side of his face. She rammed her shoulder into his torso. The man tried to catch her but Lyssa quickly climbed up to his shoulder, using momentum to twist her body and throw him away from her. The dizziness getting to be a bit much for Lyssa at this point. A part of her knew she should end this as soon as possible, but something she sensed from both of them made her reluctant to do what was necessary. She felt a heaviness in her. An inexplicable sadness and regret for what she had done. Seeing how confusing it all was, Lyssa decided to leave. She was running to the door but the robot appeared in her way, one arm extended toward her.
"It's good to see you, Y/n. I'm sorry it has to be this way."
"I said I'm not—" Lyssa retorted before an intensely painful ringing in her head brought her down to her knees. She yelped in pain, closing her ears to block it off. The pain radiated throughout her head, making it hard to think. She was losing consciousness, feeling weak by the second. She saw the sliver of red in her mind as another woman's voice whispered to her.
Get up. You can do it, môj drahý. Let me in and we'll deal with them together.
"No!" Lyssa screamed, using her wisps to push the robot's arm away from her direction. She charged at the robot, flying and crashing with it through several buildings before she threw it aside to fly away.
"Hey, get back here!" Tony said, flying after her and grabbing her ankle. Lyssa turned to kick at the robot's head. "Now that's just disrespectful!" Tony snapped. "This is gonna sting a little. We'll talk about this later, okay?" He raised his arm, his blaster charging before he shot a short blast at her. Lyssa put her shield up, letting it absorb the attack. She used it to regain some energy, forming an orb before shooting it at the robot. It hits it in the chest and Lyssa could see that it was losing power, which got it to loosen its grip on her. She pushed it away one last time before she flew as fast as she could away from them.
.
Tony activated the suit's backup power, landing it just in time before it crashed to the ground. He tracked Steve and Natasha who were already heading back to the Quinjet. "You both okay?"
"Yeah," Natasha replied, getting into the pilot's seat. "This thing managed to buy us some time but it wasn't enough. She almost got through." She took out a small gadget from her ear as Steve did the same, putting it aside.
"Yeah, she's stronger now, no doubt about that. I think our girl picked up some new skills over the years." Tony programmed the suit to return to the compound. "Not gonna lie. I'm half-glad I used the remote suit."
Steve sat next to Natasha, helping to get the Quinjet ready. "There's something different about her."
"What do you mean?" Tony asked, feeling a little suspicious.
"She didn't recognize me. She didn't even know her name."
Natasha's brows furrowed at what Steve just said, but she remembered how Y/n looked at her earlier. Itbrought to mind the name they saw in the email. "I think there's more to this than we know. Did you manage to get the tracker on her?" She asked Tony.
"She was slippery, but yeah, I did. I doubt it will work for long if she realizes it's on her and drains the energy from that as well. As of now, she's in our sights. You can see her right now," Tony shared the screen with Natasha and Steve. They watched as the blinking icon moved fast across the map.
"I think maybe we need to call in the big guns," she said.
"Hey, I thought that was me," Tony chimed in.
"No offense, Stark. But if she really doesn't recognize us, then she can be a handful to deal with, even with the three of us. I don't think we should risk anything unless we have to. I'll try and see if we can reach Wong," Steve said.
"Wong? Good luck. That man is notoriously hard to reach."
"We don't have any other choice but to try. Y/n's powers are unpredictable right now. He's our best bet if we're to get her back." Steve sighed, still troubled at how Y/n reacted to him earlier. "What do you think, Nat?"
"I'm dialing him up as we speak," Natasha said, anxiously waiting for someone to answer.
"Fine... Let me know what happens. I'll keep an eye on Y/n—makesure she doesn't get into any more trouble. I'll hatch up a failsafe plan in case she tries ghosting us again."
"Thank you, Tony. We appreciate you being here with us today. We'll be in touch soon."
A/n: Reunited and it feels so good~ Or does it? I'm so happy I can bring back the other characters, it's about time huh! Did you figure out yet who's the mysterious redhead that keeps trying to seduce our MC in her dreams? Where can Y/n or Lyssa head to next? 🤷🏽
PS: I hope nobody is confused on why I used both Y/n and Lyssa to address our MC in this chapter. Everything will be explained, more pieces of the story are slotting into place. I'll see you in the next chapter, beloved readers 💖