The hum of distant machinery echoed through the steel walls as Wanda Maximoff and Eska Vryn ascended the stairs to the Citadel’s third floor. The battles they had already faced weighed heavily on them, but neither woman showed any sign of stopping. They moved cautiously, their steps synchronized, weapons at the ready.

  “This pce just gets worse the deeper we go,” Eska muttered, her sharp eyes scanning the dimly lit corridor. “Who designs a bunker like this? A sadist?”

  Wanda smirked, gripping the Chitauri Scepter tightly. “You’re giving Hydra too much credit. Sadists usually have better taste.”

  Fracture’s voice slithered into Wanda’s mind, her tone dripping with disdain. *?“Humans always overreach. This pce reeks of desperation—and failure.”**

  “Well, let’s make sure that failure is permanent,” Wanda murmured, earning a curious gnce from Eska.

  “You talking to your symbiote again?” Eska asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Always,” Wanda replied with a faint grin. “She’s very chatty.”

  The corridor opened into a wide chamber, its walls lined with consoles and monitors dispying fragmented streams of data. Before they could take a step further, the hum of machinery grew louder, and synchronized footsteps echoed from the shadows.

  “They’re back,” Eska said, raising her rifle as a squad of mind-controlled soldiers emerged, their glowing eyes and stiff movements marking them as little more than puppets.

  “Great,” Wanda said, her voice dry. “Let’s make this quick.”

  The first wave attacked with mechanical precision. Wanda stepped forward, her crimson eyes glowing as she reached out with her mind. The connection was immediate—a cold, artificial void filled with Hydra’s commands. Wanda pushed past the barriers, seizing control of the soldiers.

  One by one, the soldiers turned on each other, firing with deadly accuracy. Within seconds, the first wave colpsed in a heap of bodies, their glowing eyes fading to bck.

  Eska lowered her rifle, her expression a mix of awe and unease. “I’m not sure whether to be impressed or creeped out.”

  “Go with impressed,” Wanda replied, a faint smirk tugging at her lips.

  The hum of machinery intensified as the second wave arrived—this time, it wasn’t soldiers but a swarm of drones and robotic dogs. The drones hovered menacingly, their guns locking onto Wanda and Eska, while the mechanical dogs charged forward, their jaws snapping.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Eska groaned, firing at the nearest drone. “Hydra made robot dogs? What’s next?”

  Wanda deflected a lunging dog with the scepter, smming the weapon’s blunt end into its head. Sparks flew as the machine crumpled. “I prefer cats,” she quipped, spinning to take out another drone with a bst of chaos magic.

  Eska snorted, narrowly avoiding a bite from another dog. “Because what this team needs is a herd of house cats.”

  The battle was chaotic, the drones and dogs attacking with relentless speed. Wanda’s symbiote cws shed out, tearing through metal limbs as her chaos magic bsted drones from the air. Eska moved with practiced precision, her grenades and rifle taking down clusters of enemies.

  As the st drone fell, Eska wiped her brow, her voice ced with exhaustion. “I’m starting to think Hydra’s running out of ideas.”

  “Spoke too soon,” Wanda said, her crimson eyes narrowing as a low growl echoed through the chamber.

  From the shadows emerged six massive cyborg tigers, their white fur streaked with bck stripes and gleaming patches of metal pting. Their glowing red eyes fixed on Wanda and Eska as they prowled forward, their movements eerily coordinated.

  “Oh, you have got to be kidding me,” Eska muttered, raising her rifle. “Hydra made robot tigers?”

  “Cyborg tigers,” Wanda corrected, her tone dry. “Apparently, they’re branching out.”

  The tigers attacked with ferocious speed, their enhanced bodies moving like well-oiled machines. One lunged at Wanda, its jaws snapping shut inches from her arm. She spun the scepter, using it to deflect the attack before driving its bde into the beast’s side. The tiger snarled, its mechanical parts sparking as it staggered back.

  Another tiger charged at Eska, who rolled out of the way and fired a burst of shots at its exposed circuitry. The bullets ricocheted harmlessly off its metal pting. “These things are tougher than they look!” she shouted.

  Wanda deflected another strike, using the scepter to knock a tiger off bance. “They’re not just tough—they’re smart. Someone programmed them well.”

  “Smart, but not invincible,” Fracture hissed. “Break their programming.”

  The rgest of the tigers stepped forward, its massive frame dwarfing the others. Half of its head was mechanical, with a glowing red eye and exposed circuits, while the other half retained the natural features of a Bengal tiger, its light brown eye glinting with a strange intelligence.

  The beast lunged at Wanda, its cws raking across her symbiote suit as it pinned her to the ground. Wanda gritted her teeth, shoving it off with a surge of chaos magic. She stood, her eyes narrowing as she focused on the tiger’s mind.

  When her magic connected, she felt a flicker of something buried deep within—a spark of consciousness, buried but not extinguished. Reaching out with her mind, she pushed past the mechanical programming, her voice soft but firm.

  “You’re not theirs. Fight with me.”

  The tiger hesitated, its red eye dimming slightly as its brown eye locked onto Wanda’s. With a deafening roar, it turned on its mechanical brethren, pouncing on one and tearing through its pting with brutal efficiency.

  Eska froze mid-aim, her jaw dropping. “Uh, Wanda? Did you just—?”

  “Make friends with a cyborg tiger?” Wanda replied, a faint grin spreading across her face. “Yeah. I guess I did.”

  The tide of the battle shifted as the massive tiger fought alongside them, its ferocity unmatched. Its cws and teeth tore through the remaining tigers, leaving nothing but sparking metal and fur in its wake.

  As the st tiger fell, Wanda approached the massive beast cautiously. Its white fur was streaked with bck stripes, and the metal pting on its body gleamed faintly in the chamber’s light. Its mismatched eyes—one glowing red, the other a warm brown—watched her intently.

  “You’re incredible,” Wanda murmured, pcing a hand on the tiger’s head. “Jasmine. That’s your name.”

  Jasmine let out a low growl, her head tilting slightly as if acknowledging the name. Despite her fearsome appearance, there was something endearing about her—a mix of power and loyalty that made Wanda’s bond with her feel natural.

  Eska approached slowly, her rifle lowered. “You’re seriously keeping her?”

  “Why not?” Wanda replied, a faint smile tugging at her lips. “She’s on our side now.”

  Eska sighed, shaking her head. “I’m starting to think you collect trouble.”

  “Trouble keeps things interesting,” Wanda said, turning to Jasmine. “Welcome to the team.”

  With Jasmine by their side, Wanda and Eska moved toward the stairs leading to the fourth floor. As they ascended, Wanda gnced at Jasmine, who padded silently beside her, her mechanical tail swaying gracefully.

  “This is going to get harder,” Eska said, her tone grim. “If these tigers were just a taste, Hydra’s saving the worst for st.”

  “Good,” Wanda replied, her crimson eyes glowing with determination. “Let them throw everything they’ve got.”

  Fracture’s voice purred in Wanda’s mind, her tone almost reverent. **“You’re growing stronger, Wanda. With allies like Jasmine and the power of the Mind Stone, you’ll shape the future as you see fit.”**

  Wanda’s grip on the scepter tightened. “And it starts here.”

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