Chapter 5: Sokovia Bound & The Maximoffs
Sokovia was a stark contrast to the sunny, if dusty, landscape of New Mexico. The air here was heavy with the scent of damp earth and the ghost of gunpowder. Buildings stood pockmarked with bullet holes, scars of a conflict that seemed perpetually poised to reignite. Adam, now sporting a nondescript backpack and wearing plain, utilitarian clothes, moved through the war-torn country like a phantom, adopting the low profile of a weary traveler, just another face in a land accustomed to hardship.
His journey had been meticulous, a silent ballet of Guild-funded covert travel. Jeremy's intel, harvested from SHIELD data streams and local contacts, had proven invaluable. Adam had used his growing (though still meager) Guild Points to acquire cheap, untraceable burner phones, false identities, and even a few basic "Stealth" skill books from the Guild Member Store for himself and Jeremy – enough to give them a slight edge in remaining undetected. The conversion rate was still painful, but GP was flowing, slowly.
He'd arrived a week ago, settling into a small, isolated rented room on the outskirts of Novi Grad. From there, he began his reconnaissance. He knew the Maximoff twins lived in a particular district, one of the poorer, more heavily affected areas.
His meta-knowledge was a blueprint, but reality was messy. He couldn't just walk up and say, "Hey, I'm from the future, don't let Hydra experiment on you." That would get him locked up, or worse, killed. He needed observation. He needed to understand their current desperation, their nascent powers, and their bond.
Days turned into a grueling cycle of observation. From rooftops, from shadowed alleyways, from bustling marketplaces, Adam watched them. Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. They were younger than he remembered them in the movies, their faces thinner, their eyes holding a raw, untamed fire. He saw them scrounging for food, sharing meager portions with the elderly. He saw Pietro's blur of speed, a desperate dash to snatch a loaf of bread, and Wanda's subtle, often uncontrolled telekinetic bursts – a teetering stack of crates suddenly righting itself, a flickering streetlamp momentarily flaring to life as her emotions spiked.
He observed their anger, their grief, their fierce protectiveness of each other. He saw how the people of Sokovia, though wary of their "gifts," also looked to them with a flicker of hope, seeing them as something more than just kids.
[Character Sighted: Wanda Maximoff – Detected]
[Proximity: High (Within 200 yards)]
[Character Sighted: Pietro Maximoff – Detected]
[Proximity: High (Within 200 yards)]
The system dinged, confirming what he already knew. Now for the delicate part. He couldn't approach them as a hero, because they didn't believe in heroes. Not after everything. He couldn't offer them a government program, because they rightly distrusted them. He had to offer them something they craved more than anything: control, purpose, and the means to truly protect their people without being exploited.
He waited for the right moment. It came late one evening. Wanda was sitting alone on a crumbling wall overlooking the ruined city, a picture of quiet despair. Pietro was off scavenging, or perhaps just running off steam. Her hand was twitching, and a faint, red wisp of energy pulsed around her fingertips, uncontrolled. She looked lost. Vulnerable.
This was it.
Adam walked towards her, not directly, but from an angle that allowed her to see him approaching. He made no sudden moves, kept his posture relaxed, his hands visible. He wasn't radiating power or authority; he was radiating quiet understanding.
Wanda tensed, her head snapping up. Her eyes, usually clouded with emotion, narrowed, assessing him. A flicker of that raw red energy intensified around her.
Adam stopped a respectful distance away, not too close, not too far. His voice was soft, devoid of his usual sarcasm, resonating with a sincerity he rarely allowed to surface.
"It's… hard, isn't it?" he began, his gaze sweeping over the ravaged cityscape before returning to her. "Seeing so much pain. Feeling so much… potential, but not knowing how to control it. Not knowing how to use it to truly help, without hurting in return."
Wanda's eyes widened slightly, her guard visibly dropping a fraction. She wasn't used to people understanding, or even acknowledging, what she felt.
"Who are you?" she asked, her voice quiet, wary.
"Just someone who's seen enough of this world's suffering to recognize it in others," Adam replied, taking a cautious step closer. "And someone who believes in a different path. A path where people like you, with your… unique gifts, don't have to hide, or be exploited. A path where you can learn to master that power, to protect your people effectively, without ever fearing that it might consume you."
He paused, letting his words hang in the air. He wasn't promising a perfect world, or a magical cure. He was offering understanding and a tool.
"I know what you feel," he continued, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "The helplessness. The rage. The desperate need to make things right. I also know a way to turn that raw potential into something truly incredible. Something controlled. Something… that can save."
He took another slow step. "I offer you not just power, but purpose. And the means to achieve it, safely. To shield your brother. To defend your home. Free from anyone's manipulation. All you have to do is… accept."
He extended his hand, not physically, but through the Guild System. A shimmering, ethereal invitation, invisible to anyone but her, appeared before Wanda.
[Guild Invitation: Wanda Maximoff]
Her eyes flickered to the strange, glowing prompt only she could see. She looked from it, to Adam's earnest, understanding face, and back again. The raw, desperate empathy in her gaze, the one Adam knew so well, was palpable. He wasn't offering her a weapon, but a shield. He wasn't offering control over others, but control over herself.
It was exactly what she craved.