"We need to find who did this," Harry stated angrily.

"And in the meantime, help the injured," Clint stated.

Daisy's sudden movement beside him, her hands shooting upwards, had Harry twisting his head to see what had caught her attention. An enormous steel beam had shifted and begun to fall, directly towards a group of four people lying prone on the ground. Only Daisy's quake powers was keeping it aloft.

Quickly, Harry summoned each of the four, shifting them along the floor about two metres and away from danger. Once the area was clear, Daisy gradually lowered the beam, making sure that it was secure and wouldn't fall any further before releasing her 'hold' on it.

"Kurt, Logan, Scott. Two men to the east, just outside the blast radius," Charles called. "I'm holding them in place."

Looking around, Harry saw a blue mutant with a tail race across, join up with the other two before he wrapped his arms around them and the three vanished in a puff of blue smoke.

Seeing the Wakandan man leaning over King T'Chaka, desperately feeling for a pulse, Harry raced to his side, dropping to his knees and waving his wand over him. The King's usually black skin was almost white with dust as he lay amongst the debris from the bombing. Unfortunately, there was nothing that Harry could do. His injuries were simply too severe; most likely, he'd been killed instantly.

"I'm sorry," Harry said, laying a hand on the man's back.

"Thank you for trying," he replied his head bowed and resting on his King's chest.

"Are you injured at all?" Harry asked.

"No. No, I am fine," the man replied.

Not trusting the man's words in his grief, Harry quickly ran his wand over him. Three cracked ribs and numerous cuts and bruises; nothing life-threatening. A series of episky's was enough to heal the cuts. Three bone-knitting spells sealed the bones back into place.

With the Wakandan seen to, Harry moved off towards the closest of the injured to check them over. He had a belt full of potions and spells ready to do what he could. Unfortunately, he was down to his last dozen drops of phoenix tears and made a mental note to acquire some more – after today, he was sure that he'd be completely out.

Harry wasn't the only one doing what they could for the injured. Jean Grey was a doctor and apparently Crystal had healer training as well. Many of the others had at least some triage experience, something that Daphne had insisted that they all attend a course in after Lagos.

The first man that Harry came across was the delegate from South Africa. He was moaning, holding his shoulder where blood was oozing out between his fingers. Gently, he pried the man's hand away, only to find that he'd been impaled by a rather large piece of sharp glass.

"Drink this," Harry ordered, holding a vial to the man's mouth.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's a potion to restore the blood that you've lost," Harry explained. "As soon as you've drunk it, I can do something about your wound."

He was forced to tilt the man's head back slightly and hold his nose to keep him swallowing the vile potion but, in the end, Harry got it into him. A diagnostic charm showed that the glass hadn't hit anything vital. Holding his hand ready alongside his wand, Harry quickly, wandlessly, vanished the glass before healing the cut. He watched as the skin knitted itself back together.

"You'll be alright now," Harry assured him. "Just rest here until the Doctors can double check you over."

As Harry began to get up to go to the next person, the South African grabbed his arm.

"Thank you," he said and Harry could see that he meant it.

Perhaps he'd made an impression. He'd worry about that later; for now, there were people who needed his help.

ooo00ooo

T'Challa sat on a bench just outside the United Nation's building. Around him, the world was in turmoil – people were running backwards and forwards, ambulances had their lights and sirens blaring, police were putting up barricades and holding the inquisitive back. But to him, it was all noise, noise that he could ignore.

His world had all but ended a scant hour ago. His father had been killed. Far from home, away from the lands of their ancestors, in this foreign place, he had died. His spirit, T'Challa knew, was far from dead, he would be joining the ancestors on the plains, running with them for eternity. But for T'Challa, his time with T'Chaka was over. At least on this Earth.

Opening his clenched fist, he focussed on the ring that he'd taken from his father. The ring of the King of Wakanda. It was his now. Oh, he'd have to go through the ceremony, but that was nothing but a formality. He, T'Challa, was King of Wakanda. It was his duty to take up the second duty – King and the Black Panther – much, much earlier than he'd ever imagined.

Plucking up the ring, he slid in onto his finger and straightened. The time for mourning was over. Now, it was time to ensure that his father's killer was brought to justice.

"Your highness," Natasha Romanoff said, standing a respectful distance away.

He looked up at her and nodded.

"I'm sorry for your loss," she said.

"Loss, yes," he nodded. "However, in my culture, death is not really the end. We know that we will see each other again, when the ones left behind have lived their days on the Earth. Until then, my father will be on the plains, running free, forever."

"That sounds peaceful," Nat said.

"My father believed so," T'Challa replied. "But I am not my father. For what was done to me, to my people, I will kill the men responsible."

"I'm not sure that you'll be allowed to do that," she said.

"We shall see," he replied. "But first, we shall hear what they have to say, to understand why they did as they did, what they hoped to achieve."

Nat nodded slowly. "The two men were taken into custody and are currently under guard in the United Nations' detention centre. We could go now, if you like."

"Yes. I would," T'Challa nodded as he stood.

It was almost time to take up the mantle of king but first, T'Challa was ready to fulfil his duty as son.

ooo00ooo

The two men were in individual cells, two of the five along the short corridor. Each cell was designed so that the ones inside could not see out through the one-way glass, nor could they hear what was said outside of their cell. Unless, of course, the ones in charge allowed them to.

"Damien Jefferson and Elijah ben Haman," the US National Security Agent, Everett Ross said, reading from the pad in his hands. "They've got a rap sheet half a dozen pages long between them. Primarily for protesting and stirring up mobs and civil unrest. This is the first time that they've been involved in explosives – that we know of."

"Where'd they come from?" Steve asked.

"From what we've been able to gather, they're part of a new group calling themselves 'Watchdogs'," the grey-haired Agent replied. "Their manifesto can be boiled down to 'being human – that's fully, human-norm – is good, being something else, is bad'. They're promoting discrimination against mutants, mutates, everyone 'different' genetically to 'pure' humans. Basically, anyone who's not a pure human, should, in their opinion, be killed."

"Human and proud," Charles summed up and seemed rather amused by the thought.

"In essence," Ross nodded.

"I must remember to find a way to tell Erik about this, I'm sure that he'd find it as ironic as I do?" Charles stated.

"Eirk?" Tony asked.

"Erik Lehnsherr, also known as 'Magneto'. A mutant who's battle cry – for want of a better term – has always been 'mutant and proud'."

"I've seen this type before," Harry stated, taking a step closer to one of the cells. "Only back then, it was 'pureblood' magicals discriminating against magicals who were labelled half-blood or muggle-born. A load of crock. It's not what you are inside, it's what you do with who you are. These two may be 'pure' humans but they're acting as the worst that they accuse us as being."

"Other magicals?" Ross asked. "I thought that there were only two of you? Sorry, three after Akimbo turned up to sit at the table."

"You'd be surprised," Harry smiled, not that Ross could see it with his face obscured and under his hood. "Just as you'd be surprised at how many Inhumans or Mutants there really are."

"What's going to happen to these two?" T'Challa asked.

"They'll be questioned, extensively so that we can learn all that we can about these 'Watchdogs', to try to get a handle on them and to put them out of business before things get any nastier," Ross replied. "After that, they'll be charged with the eighteen murders of the good people from today as well as a host of other charges longer than my arm."

"I want them," T'Challa stated. "They will return with me to face Wakandan justice."

Ross shook his head. "Not going to happen. Their crime took place here, in Vienna, not in Wakanda."

"Their actions saw the King of Wakanda killed," T'Challa stated. "They will be coming with me; our honour demands it."

"I think that there needs to be a diplomatic way to handle this," Nat stated.

"I'm with the Prince on this one," Harry said, his eyes glued to T'Challa. "They deliberately bombed the building when we were there, discussing the Accords. But it wasn't the Accords that were the target, nor was it the delegates themselves. No! It was us! They wanted us dead. And, we're incredibly lucky that they didn't succeed. If it'd been one of us, Avengers, X-Men, Inhumans, that had been killed, we'd be wanting justice as well. Send them to Wakanda, let them face the actions for their crimes there."

"That's not justice, that's revenge," Nat stated.

Harry shrugged. "Maybe the line's a little blurred but in this instance, I'm okay with that," Harry replied. "The Magicals support your claim, King T'Challa."

"I am not King yet; but thank you," T'Challa replied with a small bow.

"Mage is right," Steve said after a long moment, his eyes darting between the pair. "The Wakandan people deserve the right to see justice done. Justice, not revenge. I'd like to be there for it, if I may."

"I'm in for the tag-a-long," Tony added, to which Harry nodded.

T'Challa looked between them for a moment before his eyes turned to Ross.

"Mister Everett, I believe that you know the proper diplomatic procedures to ensure that this can happen?"

Ross found that he was being stared at from all those there, his head shifting about obviously trying to evade their eyes. Finally, he sighed.

"It's against my better judgement, but I'll see what I can do," he said before holding up a hand. "But if this happens, it's not going to be until after we've pumped them for everything that they know."

"I think that I can ensure that we get what we need," Harry stated, holding up a small vial that he'd fished out of one of his belt pockets.

"What's that?" Ross asked suspiciously.

"Veritaserum," Harry replied. "You'd call it 'truth serum'."

The group that gathered back at the Compound the next day after the aborted Round Table was much like the first meeting between the Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four and Inhumans. There were a few missing, as one would expect, but the vast majority of them were there.

"What's the word on the Accords now?" Clint asked. "Are they still going to be signed?"

"Doubtful in their current state," Matt replied. "The Round Table was really only just getting started but I believe that significant progress at getting our point across was already being made."

"I would agree," Charles nodded, leaning forward in his chair. "I believe that the dichotomy between the Accords and the United Nation's own Human Rights was never thought through properly. Whether this was a case of the entire process being rushed through, fuelled as it was by fear or the fact that we were being seen as something 'other' than human, is hard to tell. Regardless, our point was being made, the delegates definitely had looks of contemplation on their faces."

"King T'Chaka was definitely one of them," Nat stated.

"The fact that the Round Table was interrupted in such a violent manner was truly deplorable," Black Bolt signed for Medusa to relate his words to them all. "The only good that came from those actions was the fact that it was – to use their own vernacular – 'pure humans', who perpetrated the deed. That fact will show better than our words could ever say that, regardless of ancestry or genetics, people are capable of both great good and terrible evil."

"Will the talks be resumed?" Sue Storm asked.

"They have to be," Matt replied. "The Accords were tabled to be signed by the United Nations delegates, that process must be continued. Exactly when that will happen is unknown at the moment but it will happen."

"I'm in talks with some of the United Nations' lawyers," Foggy stated. "It's highly likely that we'll be able to offer a revised edition of the Accords for the delegates to ratify after the Round Table discussion."

"What would this 'revised edition' look like?" Reed asked.

"Basically, if you take out all the parts that pertain to you being monitored, finger-printed, having your DNA recorded, a power-level index applied to you and being forced to reveal your identities – for those of you who are keeping them hidden for personal reasons – then pretty similar to how it is now," Foggy replied.

"The parts about not operating in foreign nations?" Sam asked.

"Will have to stay in," Matt stated flatly. "There's nothing we can do about that. Not right now at any rate. Every country has laws about people entering or leaving their country and we're going to have to respect them."

"And what happens if we're needed somewhere and it takes too long to get through all the red tape?" Logan asked, punctuating his feelings on the matter by his adamantium claws snikt-ing in and out.

"Then we have to respect that," Charles replied. "Regardless of our personal feelings."

"There is a high possibility that the criminal elements that the Avengers and the X-Men regularly deal with will increase their activity, particularly in countries that we are not based in," Vision stated.

"If that happens and we can't go in to do our thing, then the world may just come to understand exactly why we're needed, why those Accords are bad for world peace," Sam said.

"Perhaps, perhaps not," Vision allowed. "It may have the affect of teaching the police and military of the world how to deal with such individuals and groups on their own."

"Fat chance," Logan snorted.

"Isn't that what our ultimate goal is supposed to be? Ending the mission so that we can go home and live our lives?" Bruce asked. "This may allow us to do just that."

"In the meantime, what are we supposed to do while the world goes to hell and every crackpot and wannabe dictator bubbles to the surface?" Bucky asked. "Hell, according to the Accords, we can't even operate on American soil without government permission!"

"We've got a nice little island to live on while we wait for everyone to see sense. And I'll make sure no one gets bored." Bobbi stated with a smile that had some of the Avengers shivering.

"And we have a school to run, mutants to find and teach where they can be safe from those who do not understand them," Charles agreed.

"Well, I hope it don't take long; I've never been one for patience," Logan stated, spitting the last word out in obvious disgust.

"Nevertheless, we have to abide by the Accords after they are signed or we'll be the ones hunted and imprisoned and not in a place to drag everyone's butts out of the fire when the time finally comes," Scott stated firmly.

ooo00ooo

Thor nodded to The Collector, indicating that he'd seen all that he'd wanted to. After one of his bizarre, ritualistic bows, The Collector closed the orb containing the Aether, placed the orb into its place inside the foam-lined box, snapped the box closed, locked it and inserted the box into the display case, which was also secured.

"As you can see, the Stone's protections are taken extremely seriously," The Collected stated.

"Ensure that it stays that way," Thor replied. "I have reason to believe that there is one who is seeking the Stones for himself. Currently, they are all separated and protected, but one cannot be too careful."

"You know where the others are?" The Collector asked and Thor was not fooled by the offhanded way that he asked.

"I have seen three others," he admitted. "And before you ask, no, I will not divulge their location."

"Very wise," The Collector replied, again accompanied by a bow with elaborate hand gestures.

Giving a final nod, Thor led his companions from The Collector's home and out into the concourse of Knowhere. Once they were safely away from prying ears, he stopped and faced them.

"Our leads have run dry," Carol stated. "He had no knowledge of the missing two Stones."

"He did not," Sif agreed.

"Where to next, Thor?" Volstagg asked.

"For me, Midgard," he replied. "I still believe that it is a nexus point, a place where all knowledge of the Stones collides. I aim to find out why. My friends, I thank you for accompanying me, feel free to return to Asgard."

"We will let you know if Heimdall sees anything," Sif nodded as she gathered the Warriors Three about her. "Heimdall, open the Bifrost!"

It took much longer than normal before the four were engulfed in the multicoloured rainbow, but then, that wasn't unexpected considering how far away they were from the Nine Realms.

"And you, Carol Danvers? What is your wish? I can return you to the Kree home world if you desire," Thor offered.

"Actually, I think it's time that I went home," she replied. "I've been away from Earth for far too long."

Lifting the Stormbreaker high above his head, Thor summoned his power, channelled it and opened his own portal, whisking the two of them away and across the Universe.

ooo00ooo

"So, that's it, we just run and hide now?" Sam asked as he, along with the others, watched the procession in front of him.

It'd taken a surprisingly short amount of time before they'd all been summoned back to the United Nations to finish what had been started. One of the biggest differences this time was that they were in New York at the United Nations Headquarters instead of Vienna. The other big surprise was that, before the Round Table had even been restarted, the delegates had voted on and passed the revised Accords as being the ones on the table that they would be ratifying.

Exactly as Matt and Foggy had predicted, the sections that violated basic human rights had been removed. All the other sections pertaining to when and how they were allowed to move from country to country or operate in any country had been retained. Also still in there was the section that, in essence, made their groups – Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four – illegal unless they were under the strict supervision of a United Nations Panel.

"As much as it grates, as much as I hate it, we have to," Steve replied. "For now, we have to play this by the book. Believe me, though, if things go pear-shaped and we're needed, then we'll step in, asked or not. Hopefully whatever Thor's looking into turns out to be nothing, but if it is something, then we can't