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Natasha had never seen anything quite like it. Rows upon rows of cages lined the walls of the enormous ballroom. Animals, aliens, people filled the space in each and every one. Patrons, dressed to the nines, flutes of champagne in ring-laden fists, milled around the space, chatting and laughing as they checked out the “exhibits” like families at a zoo.She had seen many unspeakable things, but this made her sick to her stomach.Steve placed a firm hand on her shoulder, tense and tight-lipped. He was as disgusted as she was at the sheer opulence and inhumanity of the whole operation, but he was mingling with the socialites all the same. They were there for a reason: to recover two human subjects captured by the “Freak-Show Expo”. Despite their discomfort, they had to blend in in order to rescue the victims. “Are you enjoying yourself, my friends?”Natasha turned to see a portly man in a pinstriped suit grinning at her and Steve. She felt he had the kind of face that begged for a well-deserved boot pressing down on it. He was clearly the one in charge, as he was flanked by a pair of suits with dark glasses - could you get any more stereotypical? As Steve accepted his extended hand, both of her evaluations was quickly proved correct.“I should hope so - we’ve gone to great lengths to procure these specimens. I tell you, this is the finest life any of these beasts could hope for!” He said to them conspiratorially, one fat hand gripping Steve’s arm. Steve smiled tersely and Natasha elbowed him in the ribs. He’d need to try harder than that to get into the slaver’s good graces.Steve shot her a look, then returned his gaze to the other man. “Yeah, the exhibits are definitely... interesting. The aliens are definitely something,” he remarked, subtly stepping away from the man and slipping his arm from his grasped.Their host laughed heartily, clapping Steve on the shoulder. “Oh, those creatures are nothing compared to some of our... closer-to-home attractions.”Natasha vowed that the bastard would have a broken nose by the end of the night. The stout man shook Steve’s hand once more, and clasped Natasha’s hand between both of his own. “Well, I’ll let you continue to look around. I hope to see you both at the auction later this evening,” he finished, winking at Natasha before sauntering off with all the grace of a drunk penguin.An auction? “That’s need to me,” she muttered in Steve’s ear. He nodded, scanning the room, before tightening his grasp on her shoulder.“I can see them. Our subjects. They’re over on the right wall, third and fourth on the left,” he murmured, shaking his head at the waiter offering drinks to the pair. Natasha could barely see them through the throng of people, but they were definitely human. “Come on,” she urged Steve as they set off across the hall.——Fighting their way through the crowd, Steve re-evaluated their plan of attack. The auction was a new piece of the puzzle, and it could prove to be the perfect avenue of recovery - or the easiest way to lose their targets completely. They had the funds, no problem. SHIELD, the espionage and humanitarian organisation they worked for, had enough money to buy the whole venue and everybody in it. However, they were surrounded by some of the richest people in the world; outbidding they would be no small object, particularly for the targets they were going for. Steve and Natasha were being kept in the dark about most of the details, but they knew there was one man and one woman, the only human specimens, and both were in incredibly high demand. Steve was desperate to find out what made these two so special. Finally, the crowd spit them out, dark suits and jewelled dresses muttering indignantly in their direction. Steve turned his eyes to the exhibits, and could not look away.The woman was dressed in red, a tight catsuit and a gauzy robe creating an almost ethereal effect. She was struggling against thick shackles that sank into the floor of the cage and bound her wrists to heavy chains. Her wide, terrified eyes glowed red as she slammed against the walls of her cage, red light winding between her fingers and wrapping around the bars. The raw power of the woman was evident, and Steve could tell that the bidding would be high for her, but he could not let anyone get their hands hon her and use her for their sordid purposes. Spectators admired from a distance, and it was easy to see that they were scared of this goddess in the cage.The man wore black slacks and a white shirt, left open to expose his chest... and the glowing blue ring set into the centre of it. He slouched in a chair in the middle of the cage, watching the patrons from under his eyelashes. There were no shackles on his wrists. If the woman fought like prey in a trap, this man was a predator; years of reading people told Steve that this man was not afraid of the people who approached the bars of his cage to examine his form - and what a form it was. He seemed completely at ease even as his mechanical heart and toned stomach were shown off for all the world to see. Steve could see why he would be in high demand - a toned and lean body suggested physical strength, but his calculating eyes displayed intelligence beyond Steve’s understanding.Steve exchanged a look with Natasha and gestured towards the cages. She nodded at the first cage, and joined the crowd to the left. She would observe the woman, and he would take the eerily calm man in the chair.He moved forwards, cautiously, watching for any sign of aggression. Suddenly, the man’s head shot up.He was looking straight at Steve.There were many other people pressed against the bars, ogling the sight in front of them, but the man was staring him dead in the eye. Aside from the air of confidence, Steve found it hard to get a read on him; his face was impassive and he barely moved a muscle as he kept his eyes trained on the newcomer. He approached the bars of the cage, maintaining eye contact with the man inside, and rested his hand on one of the bars. He was close enough that he could hear the faint humming of the blue light in his chest. The other man tilted his head ever so slightly, exposing more of his tanned neck, and Steve found himself wondering how a man so regal could ever end up in a situation like this: stuck in a cage, ready to be sold to the highest bidder.——Natasha felt completely captivated by the woman in red. The air around her crackled, making the hair on Natasha’s arms stand on end. Every move she made was charged with some kind of otherworldly energy, and Natasha was drawn to her. Her spine tingled as she watched the woman pull against her shackles. It seemed impossible that they had managed to capture someone like this, but there she was in all her glory. Natasha dared to take a step forwards. She could tell it was a risky move - the woman was already on edge, and who knows what she could do to her even with her hands bound - but she felt like there was a magnet forcing her forward. She took another wary step while the other woman was distracted, and another, until she was almost touching the bars. The woman was still distracted by her bonds, and Natasha’s whole body thrummed with the energy this impossible being was giving off. She looked around to see Steve pressed against the bars of the other cage, staring down the man in the chair. She tentatively reached out a hand to touch the bars, and the woman snapped around to slam against the bars. Natasha stumbled backwards, but kept her eyes fixed on the woman pressed against the bars, chest heaving and eyes glowing a harsh red. Natasha wondered whether she could see her. She could hear the tittering and conversation of the people behind her, but paid them no mind. She drew herself up to her full height and moved back into the crowd with dignity, like she hadn’t almost fallen on her ass. As she walked towards the mass of people around the other cage, she looked back at the woman, now pulling on the bars with her shackles hands. At a touch on her arm, she spun around to see Steve looking solemn. “You’re confident that we’ll be able to outbid them?” “Of course,” he said with a small smile, “but if worst comes to worst and someone else gets them first, we’ll take them by force.”“Alright, alright, everybody quiet down! If you wish to own one of these magnificent creatures, then make your way to the concert hall, down the corridor to your left - the auction starts in fifteen minutes,” a voice rings out over the loudspeaker. Natasha recognises it as the voice of the stout host.Steve looked down at her, his face hardening into steely resolve. “Well, I guess we’d better get going.”