Chapter 45: Unified Ascendance Project
The dark, oppressive corridors of the Ten Rings base seemed to stretch endlessly, each corner hiding another grotesque secret. Wanda Maximoff's glowing Chitauri Scepter lit their path, its hum a stark contrast to the silence surrounding them. Beside her, Natasha Romanoff moved with the practiced ease of a seasoned spy, her pistols ready for any threat.
"This place is giving me the creeps," Natasha muttered. "And I've been in some pretty bad places."
Wanda smirked. "You'd think you'd be used to it by now."
Natasha shot her a wry glance. "Creepy bases, sure. Creepy bases with failed experiments and mystical junk? That's new."
Fracture's voice purred in Wanda's mind, amused as ever. **"Oh, this one's fun. I like her. She's got jokes, and she stares at you like you're dessert."**
"Quiet," Wanda muttered, earning a curious look from Natasha.
"Talking to your alien friend again?" Natasha asked.
Wanda gave her a playful smirk. "Always. She's excellent company."
Natasha chuckled. "Glad she's keeping you entertained."
They entered a vast chamber filled with eerie blue light. Stasis pods lined the walls, each containing twisted figures—half-human, half-machine, their bodies suspended in lifeless stillness. The Hydra and Ten Rings logos adorned the pods, their sinister alliance on full display.
Natasha approached a console, her face grim as she scanned the data. "Unified Ascendance," she read aloud. "Hydra and the Ten Rings were trying to create hybrid super-soldiers. Mystical artifacts mixed with technological enhancements."
Wanda's crimson eyes glowed as she examined the pods. "And they failed."
Natasha frowned. "You sound disappointed."
"I'm angry," Wanda corrected, her voice sharp. "Angry that they used people like this."
Fracture's voice was dripping with disdain. **"Humans and their endless need to dominate. It's almost boring."**
Wanda ignored her, focusing instead on the files Natasha was uncovering. "Anything on Project Rebirth?" she asked.
Natasha nodded grimly. "It's not just about soldiers. They wanted leaders—people who could unite and control people through fear and mind control."
A faint sound made both women turn sharply, their weapons raised. A man in a lab coat stumbled out from behind a stack of crates, his hands raised in surrender.
"Don't shoot! Please!" he cried, his voice trembling.
Natasha didn't lower her pistol. "Step forward. Slowly."
The man obeyed, his eyes darting nervously between them. "I'm just a scientist. I don't know anything important!"
Wanda stepped closer, her magic crackling faintly around her fingers. "You'll tell us everything," she said coldly.
The man shook his head frantically. "I can't! They'll kill me!"
"They're not here," Natasha said sharply. "We are."
Before the man could protest further, Wanda placed her hand on his temple, her chaos magic flaring. His thoughts opened to her, fragmented and disjointed, revealing pieces of the truth. She saw images of the experiments, arguments between Hydra and Ten Rings operatives, and the words 'Project Rebirth' written on blueprints.
"Unified Ascendance," Wanda murmured. "It was never about creating soldiers—it was about creating rulers."
The man whimpered. "They wanted people who could control the masses. Leaders enhanced by—by technology and... magic."
"And who's in charge of Hydra now?" Wanda pressed.
A sudden resistance blocked her psychic probing, like a wall slamming shut in his mind. The man gasped, his body convulsing as smoke began to rise from his ears.
Wanda stepped back, her face pale. "A failsafe," she said grimly. "Hydra didn't want anyone revealing their secrets."
The man collapsed, lifeless, the smell of burnt flesh hanging in the air.
Natasha returned to the console, extracting as much data as she could onto a portable drive. "We can't leave this place standing. If there's even a chance Hydra left something behind, we have to destroy it."
Wanda nodded, her magic crackling at her fingertips. "Let's set the charges."
As Natasha planted explosives around the room, Wanda stood guard near the entrance. Her senses were sharp, her grip on the scepter firm. Fracture's voice whispered in her mind, teasing but supportive.
**"Look at you, Scarlet Queen. Taking charge, making decisions. It's almost inspiring."**
"Almost?" Wanda muttered.
Natasha glanced back at her. "What?"
"Nothing," Wanda said quickly, smirking to herself. "Just talking to Fracture."
The sound of boots echoed down the hallway, growing louder with each passing second. Wanda tensed, her chaos magic flaring as a squad of Ten Rings soldiers burst into the room.
"Company," Natasha said dryly, raising her pistols.
Wanda stepped forward, the scepter glowing. "Leave them to me."
The fight was chaotic and brutal. Wanda wielded the scepter with deadly precision, her chaos magic weaving through the air like a crimson storm. Natasha moved with the practiced ease of a shadow, her shots clean and efficient.
"Not bad," Natasha called out as Wanda sent a soldier flying into a wall.
"Just trying to keep up with you," Wanda replied with a grin.
"You're doing more than that," Natasha quipped, ducking behind cover to reload.
As the last soldier fell, Natasha glanced at Wanda. "We're clear. Let's get out of here."
Before they could move, the heavy sound of boots echoed from the hallway, slower and more deliberate this time. Wanda and Natasha turned as a tall man in Hydra uniform stepped into the room. His presence was imposing, his eyes cold and calculating.
"Well, well," he said, his voice dripping with mockery. "The infamous Scarlet Witch and Black Widow. I must say, you've made quite the mess."
Wanda stepped forward, her magic crackling. "Who are you?"
The man smirked, his hand resting on a sleek, modified weapon at his side. "You can call me Commander Reinhardt. And you've just walked into my base."
Natasha aimed her pistols at him. "Nice to meet you, Reinhardt. Now drop the weapon."
Reinhardt laughed, a low, menacing sound. "Do you really think you can destroy everything we've built? Unified Ascendance was just the beginning. Hydra always adapts."
Wanda's eyes glowed brighter, her magic swirling around her. "Hydra's about to lose this fight."
Reinhardt drew his weapon, a device pulsing with energy. "Then let's see what you've got, Scarlet Witch."
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