STEVE GLANCED BACK AT RAEVANNA BEFORE NODDING AT NATASHA AND SAM. "Put the jet in cloaking mode and land us over there," he said. "I'll engage them first, then you follow up."

"What if they're just regular people?" Diana asked.

"Trust me, Princess," Sam told her. "By the way they're moving, they're definitely not."

Raevanna bit her lip, nervousness filling her body as Sam and Natasha landed the jet on the roof of a building, then opened the ramp for the five of them to walk out. Raevanna had a feeling that this new enemy was something not just from another place, but another planet. Raevanna had never fought aliens before, and the fact that she might be facing some now both scared and worried her.

But she had to focus. Now was not the time to panic. So she turned to Steve, watching him as he silently pointed to her and then at a rooftop across from them. Knowing what he wanted her to do, Raevanna nodded before rolling her shoulders, causing her wings to appear. Then, she ran to the edge of the roof and leapt off the edge, gliding silently through the air before landing on the roof of the building Steve had pointed to.

Folding her wings against her back, Raevanna crept over to the edge of the roof and looked over the edge. Her heart immediately flew to her throat when she saw the situation, for inside the train station below them was Vision, being supported by Wanda as she tried to get him to stand. There was a huge stab wound in Vision's chest, and even though he was in obvious pain, Wanda was still trying to help him up.

"Please," Vision was saying, practically pleading with Wanda.

The Sokovian woman shook her head, still trying to help him stand. "Get up."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, two sinister-looking creatures crashed through the roof behind Vision and Wanda, then advanced on them as they brandished their weapons. Raevanna gasped quietly, seeing that they were - just as she'd feared - aliens. It was clear that their goal was to kill Vision, and they had most likely caused the wound in his chest during the attempt.

As Wanda moved protectively in front of Vision, red energy building around her hands, Steve appeared in the shadows on the far side of the platform behind them, staring at the aliens. Then, an express train passed behind Wanda, and one of the aliens - the female - cocked her head as if aware of his presence. Clearly confused, Wanda also turned and looked over her left shoulder, and as the last train car passed, Steve's silhouette was revealed to them.

Almost instantly the alien woman threw her weapon at him, but Steve deftly caught it before he stepped from the shadows, a furious look on his face. Then, while all parties were distracted, Sam swooped in and kicked the alien woman across the platform and through the closed cafe's security gate and furniture. Once she was down, he spun around and fired on the other alien. As soon as he had done so, Steve threw the alien woman's weapon to Natasha, who engaged the alien man by smoothly ducking under his swing and stabbing him in the gut before executing a flying kick to knock him backwards.

As the alien man jumped to his feet and charged at Natasha, Raevanna knew it was her cue. She sped down from the roof and torpedoed into the alien man, sending him flying as she landed in front of Natasha and conjured up a sword into her hand. Then, the alien woman jumped to her feet, rushing back to the fight and summoning her weapon back to her hand. But, as she lunged to attack Natasha and Raevanna, Diana leapt out from her hiding place, landing between the alien and the two women as their blades clashed.

Raevanna watched, impressed and shocked, as Diana smoothly dodged each of the alien woman's attacks. Even though Raevanna knew that Diana had to have been fighting for a long time, this just proved it. Raevanna had never seen anyone fight so effortlessly, yet with an incredible precision and control that could only come from years of experience. It was a sight to see, and Raevanna made a mental note to ask Diana to teach her a few things when this was all over.

After dodging the attacks, Diana swept her sword at the woman and sliced the alien's weapon clean in half. The alien stopped for a moment and looked down at the severed weapon before she snarled in rage and charged at Diana. But then, Steve appeared from behind her, leaping forward, rolling, and scooping up the alien man's dropped glaive before he fought the alien woman back. Natasha quickly joined joined in with her own escrima sticks, and moments later Sam returned and again kicked the alien woman backwards. She landed hard, but instead of fighting back, she scuttled over to the other alien, who lay on the ground, gravely wounded from Natasha's attack.

"Get up," the alien woman hissed to her partner as Sam drew both of his pistols and pointed them at the outsiders.

But the alien man simply shook his head, wheezing in pain from his wounds. "I can't," he gasped.

Any other time, Raevanna would've felt pity for him. But she knew in her heart that these two aliens were ruthless killers, and were determined to succeed no matter how many bodies they left in their wake. And she couldn't feel pity for someone like that. So she stepped forward, her weapon in her hand but lowered slightly. "We don't wanna kill you," Raevanna said coolly. "But we will."

The alien woman glared at the five heroes, her fury evident in her tone and eyes. "You'll never get the chance again," she snapped.

Suddenly, a tunnel of light surrounded the two aliens, beaming them up to an unknown source and removing them from the battle. The glaive was snatched from Steve's hand as well, and then the tunnel disappeared, and all was quiet.

Raevanna instantly slumped a little, slightly out of breath from the fight. "I really need to work out more," she muttered.

Then, she turned to the group, approaching them as Sam turned to Vision, who was being supported by Wanda. "Can you stand?" Sam asked.

Electricity shimmered over Vision's surface, and his voice distorted as he spoke to Steve. "Thank you, Captain."

Steve looked at him and nodded. "Let's get you on the jet."

Realizing that Steve hadn't yet introduced Diana to Vision and Wanda, Raevanna huffed, giving Steve a look. "Honestly, Steve, where are your manners?" she asked. When Steve frowned, Raevanna rolled her eyes in amusement before gesturing between Vision, Wanda, and Diana. "Vision, Wanda, this is Diana Prince. Diana, meet Vision and Wanda Maximoff."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Prince," Vision said, nodding at Diana.

Diana smiled, nodding at him. "The pleasure is all mine."

Vision gave her a pained smile before he was helped onto the jet by Sam. Steve and Raevanna entered the jet as well, followed by Natasha and Wanda, with Diana taking up the rear. However, as Natasha closed the doors to the Quinjet, she turned to address Wanda. "I thought we had a deal. Stay close, check in. Don't take any chances."

Wanda shook her head. "I'm sorry. We just wanted time."

Raevanna shook her head as well, a soft sigh leaving her lips. Being fugitives had a cost, they all knew that. But no matter how much time passed, the fact that a relationship was one of the costs was obviously something Wanda couldn't fully come to accept.

Still, Raevanna had sympathy for her, so she walked over to Wanda and put her hand on the young woman's shoulder. When Wanda looked at her, Raevanna offered a warm smile to show she understood, and Wanda gave her a similar, grateful smile.

Once everyone was on board, Sam jumped into the pilot's seat, then looked back at Steve. "Where to, Cap?" he asked.

Steve let out a soft sigh, looking out at the city as they lifted into the air. "Home."

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"Bisa iksis quba," Raevanna said softly.

It was hours later, and the Quinjet had arrived at the upstate New York Avengers Headquarters. While they had been flying, Steve had informed Diana about Rhodey, and how he lived there and kept tabs on the five heroes as well as and kept their whereabouts hidden from Secretary Ross.

They had all agreed that the best plan was for Diana to come in first to assess the situation, then let the others come in to help Vision. Diana was hesitant, and she had explained it was because she didn't want to lie, but Raevanna had assured her that she didn't have to. However, when Diana questioned her further, Raevanna didn't give her an answer; she and Steve had discussed that they were going to enter the building regardless of whether or not Secretary Ross was there, but didn't want to worry Diana by telling her.

Still, Raevanna herself was worried, but for different reasons. Their encounter with the two aliens had set off dozens of alarms in her head, and all of them were telling her that this wasn't the last time they'd be seeing them. They'd be back for Vision, Raevanna was sure of it.

"What's bad?" Steve asked, turning to her.

"This." Raevanna gestured to Vision, who was still injured as he rested his head on the wall of the jet. "And those aliens... I've never seen or heard of them before, but I know they're not gonna stop until they have Vision. And I'm pretty sure they don't want him, they want his stone."

Steve crossed his arms, nodding in agreement. "What do you think they want with it?"

Raevanna shook her head. "Thor said before that it wasn't the first Infinity Stone to show up on Earth in the past couple years, and that someone was playing a game with us. I didn't really believe him at first. But now I do."

"So what, you think these aliens are the ones playing the game?" Steve asked.

"No." Raevanna shook her head again. "But I do think they work for the one who is."

Steve didn't reply as he rubbed his face, clearly as worried and stressed as Raevanna felt. Then he turned to her, nodding a few times. "Well, that's why we're here. And Diana seemed to recognize the aliens, so hopefully she'll be able to tell us more."

Raevanna nodded back, but didn't answer.

"Diana's been in there for awhile, Cap," Sam said, catching their attention. "Think it's time we go in?"

Steve seemed to snap out of a trance, straightening up and nodding. "Yeah. Let's go."

With Steve and Raevanna in the lead, the fugitive Avengers entered the building. As they walked into the room, they saw Rhodey and Diana standing there, with a hologram of Secretary Ross standing before them.

"I remember your signature on those papers, Colonel," Secretary Ross was saying.

"That's right," Rhodey replied, sounding a little bitter. "And I'm pretty sure I've paid for that."

Secretary Ross glanced at the army veteran. "You have second thoughts?"

Rhodey shook his head. "Not anymore."

That was when the fugitives made themselves known, stepping into the light and revealing themselves to the Secretary. The older man turned to them, frowning when he saw Steve and Raevanna in the lead.

Steve nodded at the hologram. "Mr. Secretary," he said coolly.

Secretary Ross scoffed. "You got some nerve. I'll give you that."

Raevanna glanced at him, unable to hide the venom in her words; she really hated this man. "You could use some of that right now."

Secretary Ross rolled his eyes, clearly ignoring her as he looked at Steve. "The world's on fire. And you think, all is forgiven?"

Steve shook his head. "I'm not looking for forgiveness. And I'm way past asking for permission. Earth just lost her best defender. So we're here to fight." Steve took a step forward, looking right at Ross. "And if you wanna stand in our way..."

"We'll fight you, too," Raevanna finished, her shoulders tense and her eyes narrowed.

Secretary Ross met her gaze before turning to Rhodey. "Arrest them."

Rhodey nodded. "All over it." He waved his hand, swiping off the hologram, and the computer beeped twice before he faced Steve and smiled. "That's a court-martial." He then hugged Steve in a warm embrace. "It's great to see you again, Cap."

Steve grinned, hugging Rhodey back. "You too, Rhodey."

Natasha and Raevanna received their own embraces from Rhodey before the veteran soldier looked at Diana. "I'm assuming Captain Charming here persuaded you to come along?"

Diana grinned. "Sort of. He offered, but a friend of mine made a point that convinced me to help."

"Well, I'm glad. We need all the help we can get these days." Rhodey smiled, then looked at Steve and the others. "Wow, you guys really look like crap. Must've been a rough couple of years."

Sam shrugged, also smiling. "Yeah, well, the hotels weren't exactly five star."

"Uh, I think you look great," a voice said from behind them.

They all turned around to see Bruce walking towards them from the opposite end of the room, seeming both embarrassed and nervous to be standing in front of them. "Uh...," he said hesitantly. "Heh... Yeah. I'm back."

Natasha gave him a small, embarrassed smile. "Hi, Bruce."

Bruce smiled back, equally as embarrassed. "Nat."

There was a heartbeat of silence before Sam whispered, "This is awkward."

Raevanna saw Diana's frown; it was clear that she was confused. So Raevanna walked over to Diana, nudging her shoulder before whispering, "They were like a couple for awhile. Then Bruce vanished a couple years ago without a trace and they haven't seen or heard from each other since."

Diana glanced at Raevanna in surprise, who simply smiled before gesturing for the others to follow.

Minutes later, the seven of them gathered in another room to discuss the battle that had just occurred. Diana was a great help, since she was able to tell them as much about the two aliens as she knew. The two they had encountered were named Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive, two ruthless aliens who were nothing but killers. But even though it helped by putting a name to the face, it didn't instill much confidence. And it was only made worse when Bruce told them about the mad Titan Thanos, who the two aliens worked for and was intent on ending all life in the universe. It scared Raevanna, knowing the scale and the scope of what they'd be facing.

"So we gotta assume they're coming back, right?" Rhodey asked.

Wanda nodded. "And they can clearly find us."

"We need all hands on deck," Bruce agreed. "Where's Clint?"

Raevanna shook her head at the mention of their friend and teammate. "After the whole Accords situation, he and Scott took a deal," she explained. "It was too tough on their families, they're on house arrest."

Bruce frowned in confusion. "Who's Scott?"

"Ant-Man," Steve told him.

Bruce huffed in disbelief. "There's an Ant-Man and a Spider-Man?" Shaking his head, he went on, "Okay, look... Thanos has the biggest army in the universe. And he is not gonna stop until he... he gets..." He pointed to the stone in Vision's head. "Vision's Stone."

"Well then, we have to protect it," Diana said.

"No," Vision said, speaking up. "We have to destroy it." Raevanna and the others faced him, and he began walking towards them. "I've been giving a good deal of thought to this entity in my head, about its nature." He tapped the stone. "But also, its composition. I think if it were exposed to a sufficiently powerful energy source, something, very similar to its own signature, perhaps... its molecular integrity could fail." As he finished speaking, he addressed Wanda as he neared her.

Wanda immediately shook her head, walking towards him. "And you, with it. We're not having this conversation."

"Eliminating the stone is the only way to be certain that Thanos can't get it," Vision told her.

"That's too high a price," Wanda replied.

Vision took Wanda's face gently in both hands. "Only you have the power to pay it." Wanda shook her head and walked away, distressed, and he went on, "Thanos threatens half the Universe. One life cannot stand in the way of defeating him."

As Vision had been speaking, Steve's eyes had been diverted down. Then, he spoke. "But it should." He looked up at Vision. "We don't trade lives, Vision."

Raevanna couldn't help but nod in agreement. It wasn't just the fact that Vision was the only one capable of controlling the stone's power; it was also that he was her friend, and she honestly couldn't live with herself if she lost another person she cared for - especially if she could do something about it.

Vision walked toward Steve. "Captain, 70 years ago, you laid down your life to save how many millions of people. Tell me, why is this any different?"

Steve took a breath, clearly conflicted, but before he had a chance to answer, Bruce spoke.

"Because you might have a choice," he said to Vision. "Your mind is made up of a complex construct of overlays. J.A.R.V.I.S., Ultron, Tony, me, the Stone. All of them mixed together. All of them learning from one another."

Wanda glanced at him. "You're saying Vision isn't just the stone?"

Bruce nodded. "I'm saying that if we take out the stone, there's still a whole lot of Vision left. Perhaps the best parts."

Raevanna faced Bruce in surprise; that might just work. "Can we do that?" she asked.

Bruce sighed, shaking his head. "Not me. Not here."

"You better find someone, and somewhere fast," Rhodey told him. "Ross isn't exactly just gonna let you guys have your old rooms back."

Steve was quiet for a moment before he spoke. "I know somewhere."

Despite how much she trusted Steve, Raevanna felt a twinge of worry as Diana questioned him about where. "I hope you don't mean Elyon," Raevanna said to him.

Steve shook his head. "No, no, of course not." He looked around at the heroes in the room. "I mean Wakanda."

Raevanna instantly knew what he was referring to. After finding out that it was Zemo who killed his father and not Bucky, T'Challa had offered for Bucky to stay in Wakanda while they tried to help him get rid of his homicidal HYDRA implants. Steve, Raevanna, and Blake had been present at the time and had thanked T'Challa profusely for his help, and Blake had even offered to stay with Bucky so he'd have a familiar face when he returned. So Raevanna nodded in agreement at Steve's suggestion.

Diana, however, didn't react the same way; instead her eyes widened, and she gasped before saying, "What?"

Raevanna turned to her, frowning. Diana knows something about Wakanda that we don't, she realized.

"Wakanda," Steve said to Diana. "Their technology is highly advanced, if anyone can help Vision, it's them." Frowning at her, he then asked, "Why, are you opposed to it?"

Diana shook her head. "No, it's not that."

"Have you ever been there?" Natasha asked.

"Yes, I have. It's just..." Diana sighed. "I know the king."

"Really?" Raevanna said, surprised by her words. "How well do you know him?"

Diana bit her lip, clearly a bit hesitant. "Quite well, actually. We, uh... we dated for a brief time."

Raevanna blinked, shocked, before she and the others looked at one another in equal shock. Then, Sam spoke.

"Well," he said. "Things just got a lot more complicated."

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A/N: none