Marvel Ch 20: Spared (Patreon)

"Who... are you?" Wanda inquired, her voice holding an entrancing allure,  wielding a ball of destructive chaos magic at her fingertips.

Jerry heaved a sigh, relinquishing his scepter as he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. 

It wasn't as if he required his hands to subdue the inexperienced Scarlet Witch, so he decided to introduce himself.  "Name's Jerry Anderson, and I'm not your enemy."

Strangely enough, he felt a bit glad to introduce himself as 'himself'.

"You are not a friend of mine either." She said in a strange accent while gritting her teeth. 

"Why did you kill everyone in this place?" She asked.

Her chaotic energy remained undispersed, and with her disheveled hair and the dark circles beneath her slightly glowing eyes, she presented an intimidating visage.

How was she aware of that fact, while locked in her chamber? He surmised it had something to do with her extraordinary powers, but he dared not question her. The roles were clearly defined: she was the interrogator, and he was not.

"Well, I had my motivations," he began, casting a glance at the Scepter. "I also had another reason for entering your chamber." Jerry skillfully steered the conversation to align with his intentions.

The crimson, misty ball of energy in Wanda's hands flickered at his words. "And what might that be?" she inquired further, her thoughts oscillating between taking his life or sparing it, depending on his response.

"I need your help." Jerry replied, "Of course, I'll provide proper compensation. It could be anything... saving your country, helping with your revenge..."

The black-haired girl fell into deep thought, her mind wandered off to the memories of the past. 

A harrowing past...

The missile that detonated two floors below, and the one that ominously remained inert before her and her brother's faces. The fear that each shift in the rubble might trigger a catastrophic explosion haunted her.

All that pain, loss, and suffering... and the perpetrator behind it all, etched on the missile's shell with a single word: Stark.

But in that moment of distraction, the ball of crimson energy which got fueled by her tumultuous emotions, spiraled out of control. A shockwave rippled through the room, shattering everything in its path, including the two-way mirrored observation wall.

"Aah!" Wanda gasped, her voice trembling as she surveyed the destruction around her.

"Incredible output. But you suffer from a severe lack of control.", Jerry remarked, completely unscathed by the grace of his own telekinetic powers, as he approached the Scepter, his steps crushing the rubble beneath his feet.

"As of now, you need training..." He said as he willed the scepter to revolve around him, showing off his powers to her. "And I think that I can be a good mentor, considering that I have a bit of experience with telekinesis."

Wanda turned her head to him, her mysterious eyes glowed a bit crimson, glaring at him, causing Jerry to feel a probe in his mind. 

"Are you wondering why you can't get inside my mind?" He asked.

"Yours is the toughest I have come across since gaining my powers." She replied, "Seems almost impenetrable."

"Well, that's thanks to my step-sister." Jerry shrugged, "Anyway, what about my offer? Will you accept?" 

The crimson glow in Wanda's eyes faded, her black eyes returning. After a brief stare at his visor, she sighed, "For now, I'll come with you."

Jerry clasped his hands, "Great, then let's get your bother too."

Wanda nodded, "Of course."

They exited her chamber and entered the quarters of the speedster. While the siblings engaged in a private conversation, Jerry stood a short distance away with folded arms.

Words like "Do not trust," "Use him for our own good", and "Help me train my powers", fell on Jerry's ears but he let the twins continue their discussion.

After a few minutes, the white-haired boy walked towards him with a cocky attitude, "Take off your mask.", he demanded.

Jerry sighed under his black lustrous visor, "Trust me, you don't want to see what's inside."

Pietro arched an eyebrow, unwavering. Fortunately, Wanda intervened, "Stop wasting time, Pietro. Let's leave, Jerry."

Pietro chuckled, "This guy's name's Jerry?"

Jerry rolled his eyes behind his visor and motioned them to follow him, ignoring Pietro's remark.

While on the way out, Strucker called out to him to hand him a drive loaded with all the required data. Behind him were the dozen Chitauri carrying cardboard boxes and some equipment in their hands. 

The Chitauri soldiers' faces were hidden as well, so at least for now, the twins are unaware that Jerry and his soldiers are aliens.

"Maximoffs, meet the guy who's responsible for the civil war ongoing in your country," Jerry said, giving a side hug to Strucker.

"Strucker, be a dear and tell them please."

Removihis hands from Strucker's shoulders, Jerry added, "Oh, he's under the effects of Scepter, so you can trust his words completely." 

Strucker nodded and proceeded to narrate how Hydra, by hook or crook, by bribes or blackmails, had manipulated the people in power, behind the scenes to orchestrate a civil war to make the country unstable.

The riots, the violent protests, and the suffering of people gave them an easy way to manipulate individuals into unknowingly joining Hydra. 

"And hence we were able to build several strongholds such as this across the land. The best part is that we end up gaining foolish volunteers such as these to willingly help in our illegal activities or even human experimentations." 

"That's enough," Jerry stopped Strucker as he noticed the incensed look on the twins' faces.

"Control your emotions, Wanda." Jerry tapped on Wanda's shoulder.

"Why..." She glared at Strucker, chaos dancing on her fingers as she moved to him. 

Her anger was completely valid as Strucker and Hydra had destroyed their country and their futures by turning them into these monsters.

"He deserves this...", Pietro chimed in, arms folded, observing his sister's impending confrontation.

"I agree, but the one who's going to kill him is me." Jerry declared.

He just didn't want Wanda to get her first kill like this, as it might later cause some psychological trauma. And given what kind of mental health Wanda had throughout MCU, Jerry just didn't want her to add another event in her pitiful life that'd haunt her.

Pietro sighed, he didn't much care who killed Strucker but to him, it was better if his sister didn't have to get her hands dirty, so he asked Wanda to let Jerry have what he wanted.

Wanda took a deep breath, reining in her emotions, and agreed.

Jerry just pierced Strucker's head, heart, and several other organs, before moving forward, "Let's leave," he said without turning back.

Jerry had no qualms in killing the guy, he was evil, plus, he couldn't even use him for long as the effects of the Scepter were quite brittle. One hard bang on the head and he was out of Jerry's mind control. 

'I should order a Chitauri to cremate his body. Can't have him returning due to some science bullshit later on in the future...'

The twins nodded and followed him out. As they watched Jerry's huge army returning back to the ship after the clean-up, they couldn't help but wonder who really Jerry was.

Arriving at a seemingly empty spot, Jerry tapped on his wrist terminal a couple of times and the Stealth Ship came out of the camouflage and showed itself.

And once they saw the Stealth ship, they were awed at its magnificent appearance.

He tapped the terminal again and a bluish light pulled them all to the ships.

After arriving inside the ship, Jerry headed straight to the navigation deck. And with nothing to do, the twins followed after him, gazing and getting amazed by the ship's futuristic interior along the way. 

Alice, the little girl he sent to the ship with the soldiers a while ago, was sitting on one of the cockpits and playing with the controls and levers.

She leaped from her seat and rushed over for a warm embrace.

'Children can form attachments so quickly,' Jerry mused, offering a gentle pat on her head.

'Hm, everything that needed to be done here, has been done. It's time to leave.' He thought as he checked the status of the mission. And prepared to leave Earth.

"Alice, buckle up, we're going to the moon," Jerry announced.

Wanda and Pietro were a bit dumbfounded, 'Moon, really?'

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