ALTERED PROBABILITIES

By David Smith

Avengers Mansion, New York

As she stepped into the briefing room, Wanda Maximoff, better known as the Scarlet Witch, looked at the only other occupant. She walked to her chair and sat down as she struggled to keep the anger she had been feeling for the last two days in check. “This had better be good. I thought that I had been a member of this team for long enough to be approached when a new roster was being formed! Instead I find out that you’re letting heroes who haven’t even been a member of any team that doesn’t have an X in the name onto the team while Jen and I are left in the dark…”

Steve Rogers looked at Wanda, appraising her for a moment before he spoke. “There is a very good reason why I didn’t contact you or Jen about staying on the team. The Avengers have been approached by the mayor of Los Angeles following the attack, asking us to re-assemble the west coast team. Since you have some experience as deputy leader, I decided to offer you the position of team leader of the west coast team.” He smiled. “That’s why you were kept off the east coast team roster.”

Wanda looked at Steve as she tried to think of what to say. “If I accept the position, would I have control over the team roster?”

Steve nodded. “As far as team composition and other day to day decisions go, the west coast operation would be autonomous. The Maria Stark Foundation will refit the old team’s headquarters in LA to bring it in line with the technology here. Apart from that, the big question is are you going to take the job?”

Wanda considered the offer for a second before smiling. “You have a deal.”

Four Hours Later

Wanda looked at each of the unique individuals in the room with her before speaking. “You may be wondering why I’ve called you here. As you probably all know, the attacks in LA by the Masters of Evil have caused major damage to the area. This has led the authorities to request that the Avengers reopen their branch there. All of you – She-Hulk, Quicksilver, Giant Man and Silverclaw – are the people I want to comprise this team. This will mean moving out to the west coast.”

She moved her gaze to the young hispanic woman. “Lupe.” Maria de Guadelupe Santiago, a.k.a. Silverclaw, nodded. “I’ve made inquiries and there shouldn’t be any problems with transferring your studies to a university in Los Angeles. All of you are people I know I can trust and will be an asset to the team. Tony estimates that the old compound will have been refitted to the standard of this mansion within eight days. If you agree to joining the team you should be willing to be out there by that time.”

Downtown Manhattan; Six Days Later

“I really think this is going to work, Steve. Hank and Jen have agreed to move to California and I think Lupe is starting to come around to the idea, although she’s going to miss Edwin. And with Simon agreeing to rejoin the team on a more permanent basis, there’s quite a power base. Hold on, Steve… I’ll have to call you back, I think there’s something happening.” Wanda Maximoff turned off her mobile phone and looked around as she heard a sound like distant thunder, her eyes widening as she saw a blue and red clad figure flying through the air towards a large crowd. From the figure’s posture, it appeared he had been hit with enough force to propel him a great distance.

Wanda concentrated as she called upon her powers. She could feel probabilities altering as a sudden, highly localized gale force wind blew the figure away from the crowd and any buildings until he could control his course. Then she ran into a alley, needing somewhere quiet to change into her business clothes.

Richard Rider managed to regain some degree of control over his velocity five hundreds meters in the air. I didn’t think that dork was so strong. I mean, X-Force used to beat him up regularly. He must be working out. Where the hell is this wind coming from? Rider flew out of the blast of wind and flew back the way he had came, smiling as he spotted his target.

Forearm, formerly of the Mutant Liberation Front, had obviously come down in the world somewhat, robbing a bank. He looked up as the man called Nova flew in. “Haven’t you given up yet, Kid Nova, or do I have to hit you all the way into orbit?”

Rider saw red at the comment, swooping in and pounding on the mutant as he shouted at him, his words punctuated by punches. “My name is Nova!” He delivered the coup de grace by grabbing the semiconscious mutant and flying him fifty feet in the air and throwing him to the ground. He then landed by the now thoroughly unconscious mutant to receive the adoration of the public.

“Nova.” Richard turned around to see Wanda, now in her Scarlet Witch costume. “I would like to speak to you. I have an offer to make.”

Five Minutes Later

“You’re joking, right? Do I look like an idiot?”

1800 Palos Verde Drive, Los Angeles; Two Days Later

“So, what’s the plan when the others arrive, Wanda? Hank says he wants the kid to undergo tests when he gets here.” Simon Williams, better known to the world at large as either Wonder Man or the star of the Arkon series of movies, smiled.

Wanda Maximoff shook her head. “Hank can put Nova through his normal battery of tests before the meeting. We’ll need to have an idea of his power levels since the New Warriors were obviously not too keen on formal testing. Vance and Angelica are sure he has the right stuff and I’ve worked with him more than once. I’m sure that he’ll make the grade. Between us two, Pietro, Jen, Hank, Richard, and Lupe, we’ve got quite a team.”

“That’s got to be a first, Pietro late for anything.” Simon smiled again. “It’s not like the old west coast team. Clint’s on the run somewhere with the Thunderbolts, and none of the old team were as young as the kid or Lupe.”

“Lupe is probably more powerful than anyone can guess, at least judging by her mother, and Nova has more experience than many heroes twice his age.” Wanda looked at Simon and grinned. “Considering the amount of time you’ve spent dead, he might have more experience than you. Jen and Lupe should be back from their shopping trip soon, and Nova’s due in from the east coast today. I’ll call the meeting when everyone gets here.”

“How is he doing, Hank?” Wanda looked at the young man in the room next door as she walked over to Doctor Hank Pym, scientific genius.

Hank pointed to a computer screen that showed some alarming test results. “He’s absorbing an amount of energy on par with Warbird’s best results when I tested her. I am going to have to stop the test soon because the emitter will reach its maximum power limit before Nova reaches his. I’ll have to run more tests on him that, judging by his reaction to these tests, will not please him.”

As they stepped out of the taxi at the front gates of the compound, Jennifer Walters and Maria de Guadelupe Santiago prepared to move a vast collection of newly purchased clothes into the mansion. They had spent most of the morning buying new clothes for Maria and getting the young woman settled into university in L.A.

As Jennifer finished paying the taxi driver, she turned to see her younger teammate staring at the something on the compound. “What is it, Lupe?”

Maria turned to Jennifer and pointed to the trees bordering the compound. “Look at the trees outside the compound. The wind is blowing them one way and the trees inside the compound are blowing the other way. I’m no meteorologist, but I don’t think that’s possible.”

Jennifer looked at the rather odd sight and, picking up her bags, started walking to the mansion. “I think we really need to speak to Wanda. The impossible is her specialty.” Maria ran after her, her skin turning silvery as she changed into a form that was half-human, half-jaguar.

Richard Rider was starting to think that joining the Avengers was a bad idea. He had barely put his bags in the bungalow which would be his home while working with the Avengers when he was called to the main house. Doctor Pym had wanted him to undergo ‘a few tests’. A few tests had consisted of being shot by a laser cannon while Doctor Pym watched him absorb the energy from inside a safely shielded room. “Hey Doc, any chance of you turning this thing off?”

Hank nodded. “Okay, I’ve got all the information I need at the moment. How do you feel?”

“Great. Err, Doc… is that supposed to be some sort of joke for the new guy?” Richard was pointing to the clock on the wall.

“What do you mean, Richard?”

“I mean the clock going backwards in here.”

Henry looked through the glass then at the digital clock on the wall. Both were running backwards. He turned to Wanda. “Is this your doing?”

Wanda shook her head as she slumped to one knee. “No, but I can feel something… suddenly. As if someone’s poking red hot needles into my brain. It’s agonizing…”

Henry ran to Wanda as he heard the door to the testing room open. “Richard, I think something very wrong is happening.” His eyes widened as Wanda fell to the floor, her eyes wide and staring aimlessly into space.

Hank knelt and checked her over before turning to Richard. “I can’t get a pulse.”

“This is bad, isn’t it Jen?” Lupe was starting to think that joining an active Avengers team was a bad idea. She had been in her new home for less than a day and now anything which was not bolted down in the main hall was spiraling through the air towards the ceiling.

Jennifer looked at her teammate and smiled. “I’ve seen stranger things in my time, but not many. I hate to say it, but this looks like Wanda’s power at work. It looks like the objects are forming a DNA helix.” Jen looked at Maria and put on her ‘game face’. “You check down here and I’ll look upstairs.”

Simon had just stepped out of the shower when he first felt strange, almost drained. He reached for the wall to steady himself as another wave of weakness shot through him.

Maria ran into the kitchen as she felt the ground shake under her feet. The disturbing feeling had grown so strong she could almost taste it. She searched the ground floor before walking to the base of the main staircase.

Jen had already searched most of the bedrooms before opening the door to Simon and Wanda’s room. She winced as she saw Simon glowing with energy. “Simon?”

Simon slumped against the wall as pain like he had never suffered seemed to boil out of him. “Get out of here!”

The resulting explosion of ionic energy destroyed most of the mansion.