shards - pietro maximoff

chapter thirteen ; enemies and explosions

"That truck's loaded for max weight. And the driver's armed." Sam responded, and the three women stood up from their chairs, inconspicuously leaving the patio.

"It's a battering ram." Natasha's heels clicked on the ground.

Steve grabbed his shield and left the building he was scouting from. "Go now."

"What?"

"He's not hitting the police."

Wanda looked to Dahlia and nodded, the two running towards the building on the far end of the street, which had a sign that read, 'INSTITUTE FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES'.

The truck rumbled forward, and just as it was about to reach the gate, the driver jumped out at the last minute, sending the vehicle straight into the gateway. Dahlia pulled Wanda behind a wall to duck from the flames that burst out, and they watched as several men with fire retardant gear enter the newly-made hole, climbing past what used to be the security.

"Fuck. Steve, they compromised our entrance. Can you see anything?" Dahlia swore over the comms.

"Body armor. AR-15's. I make seven hostiles." He responded gruffly.

There were a few grunts from Sam's end of things before he said. "Make that five."

Wanda and Dahlia exchanged a look, knowing that they couldn't get into the vicinity by just walking in.

They had practiced it before, but she was still wary. Nonetheless, it was their only option at the moment.

Dahlia braced herself, feeling Wanda's powers surround her and push her up and into the premises. She followed soon after, and the two landed on the roof next to Sam, who had just taken down yet another soldier. "Four."

The three Avengers jumped down to the lot below, Steve fighting off a soldier as he did so. Dahlia landed on her feet, and immediately sprang into action— sweeping her leg underneath another one of Rumlow's soldiers and knocking him to his feet.

With one swift kick to his chest, the man was unconscious, with Dahlia's foot keeping him firmly on the ground. She wiped the sweat from her brow and brushed a strand of hair out of her face before saying, "Three."

Sam looked up at the building, scanning the floors. "Rumlow's on the third floor."

"Natasha? Status?" Steve asked, moving his hand to his earpiece.

"I'll be able to provide backup in about five minutes."

Cap grumbled under his breath. "Great. I'm going after him. Anelace, hold them off. I'll call in the one-man backup." He spoke into the comms one more time before taking off. "Speedy, it's a-go."

Wanda used her magic to lift Steve up onto the third floor. He used his shield to break through the glass, and the younger Maximoff used her magic to clear the building of the toxic gas.

A flash of blue ran to her aid, and Dahlia grinned at the sight of Pietro Maximoff. During their training— which she had passed with flying colors, by the way— Steve had figured out that the two worked perfectly in synch, so ever since then, when it came to holding off their opponents, Cap had taken to sending them together, since they performed at their best together.