It turned out that just getting into Belgrade required more than just UN Security Clearance. Diplomacy had to be involved, especially given Serbia's recent spate of ethnic cleansing and the whole break they've had with the international community over it. Thor and I were both in favor of just showing up and daring them to do something about it, but Cap and Doctor Strange wanted to do this properly. Tony didn't care either way, just so long as things got done, which left Reed Richards as the Tiebreaker. Reed opted to follow Cap's lead, which settled the issue. Mind you, Reed wasn't actually coming to Belgrade with us, which I felt made his position as the tiebreaker invalid, but the people who've been doing this for over a decade overruled my feelings on the matter.
Effectively, that meant waiting around for most of a day for things to go through the proper diplomatic channels. That was easier said than done, since after the recent ouster of the Milosevic Government by NATO intervention, a Military Junta had taken power under General Aram. Juntas weren't known for their diplomatic skills, and General Aram had been one of the few Serbian Generals from the pre-intervention days to escape Milosevic's fall relatively unscathed, largely thanks to a commitment to cracking down on the paramilitaries in his area of responsibility.
That in and of itself wasn't indicative of General Aram being a good person, though. He simply preferred more subtle ways of getting what he wanted, namely, a Greater Serbia. There had been rumors that he'd attempted to smuggle a suitcase nuke into Sarajevo during the height of the Bosnian War to attempt to remove the resistance to Serbian control from the map along with a good chunk of the city. Nothing had ever been concretely proven, however, which was why he was currently the head of the Government.
Tony had been able to get some data from scans of a Serbian Government Computer that had been hooked into the Government Mainframe when we'd actually made it over to Serbia that indicated that at the very least, the Serbian Government was complicit in the unrest in Mordvania and Carpasia that Mors Cruentia had taken advantage of to spark his takeover of those nations. I could only speculate as to why they'd done so, but if I had to guess, the Serbs had planned to take advantage of their aid in the removal of ethnic Albanians as some sort of stepping stone toward negotiating Mordvania and Carpasia joining Serbia in a Federal State.
Unfortunately, Tony couldn't get much more than that without going to a more active scanning posture, which would tip off the Serbians that he had been delving into their government mainframe. We weren't trying to spark an international incident, after all. Doing so would at the very least ensure the Serbians wouldn't answer any questions about Mors Cruentia or Doom, and that was the whole reason we were here. Mind you, we'd been in Serbia a full day already and General Aram hadn't met with us yet.
Instead, we had been put up in rooms in the Hotel Moskva for the night, where Tony had immediately found no fewer than six bugs planted. It wasn't exactly in the spirit of international cooperation for that to happen, and I said so. The others were more sanguine.
"Honestly, if they hadn't tried to bug our rooms, then I'd be more worried." Shrugged Tony.
"General Aram is the type to do this. You just need to be aware of that and expect it." Nodded Cap before turning to look out the window at the city.
"Not that I couldn't have put up a privacy spell that would have rendered such technological measures impotent. I'm certain you have spells of your own for that." Added Doctor Strange.
"It's the principle of the thing." I grumbled.
"Verily. It makes this General Aram out to be not very forthcoming. In truth, I have to wonder how much information he will hold back from us, knowing that this is how he treats guests." Concurred Thor.
"Thank you! See, Thor gets it, I don't know why you guys don't." I nodded.
"Thor's not as jaded as the rest of us." Shrugged Tony.
"Somehow. Despite the fact that he has been around for over a thousand years." Smirked Doctor Strange.
"Mayhaps I just have a more optimistic disposition than the rest of you?" Offered Thor.
"Right. And I'm the Shi'ar Empress." Snorted Tony.
"Hold up. A Government Car just pulled up to the Hotel. I think we might finally be getting our meeting." Informed Cap from over by the window.
"About time. The hostile energy in this city is a lot." I admitted.
"Indeed. I've been picking up a sort of undercurrent of menace this entire visit. I think perhaps we may wish to be on guard." Agreed Doctor Strange.
"You don't think that General Aram is going to pull something, do you?" Questioned Tony.
"It's possible. I've dealt with his type before back during the War. If he thinks he can remove us as a problem, he'll try." Frowned Cap.
"Let him. He shall not find the Son of Odin so easy a target." Intoned Thor.
"Throttle back a bit, Thor. We don't want to start an international incident." Reminded Tony.
"That said, if we're attacked? I've got no problems going all out in self-defense." I pointed out.
"Nor do I. The Sorcerer Supreme will not be brought down by the minions of some Tinpot Balkan Dictator." Scoffed Doctor Strange.
"Only if we're fired on first." Ordered Cap.
A knock on the door cut any further discussion short as I opened the door to reveal a pair of agents in black suits, one a bald, pale, Man and the other a platinum-blonde Woman who seemed to glow to my third eye. She was a Sorceress of some description, there was no doubt in my mind about that.
"General Aram will meet with you now in the Royal Palace." Stated the Man.
"If you'll come with us, we will escort you to the meeting." Insisted the Woman.
"Come on, we don't want to keep our host waiting." Remarked Cap as he strode out the door. The rest of us followed him while the two agents led us to a black town car. We got in the back as the Male Agent got into the driver's seat while the Woman got shotgun. The partition that was put up offered the illusion of privacy but there was likely a bug in the back recording any potential conversation.
That was confirmed by Tony, who put his finger up to the faceplate of his armor as if to shush us while pointing to the light. Doctor Strange nodded and made a mystic gesture, silently casting a privacy spell. His hands glowed golden for a moment before the light cut out and he nodded.
"There, we should be able to speak freely now. Any listeners will only hear the ambient noise of the car ride." Informed Doctor Strange.
"Let's get the obvious out of the way first. Our escorts. Tony, what can you tell me about any weapons they might have on them?" Queried Cap.
"The Man's got cybernetic enhancements. I scanned some knockoff Crimson Dynamo Tech, Carbonadium matrix subdermal armor, electric servomuscles, things like that. Probably why the guy's so pale and bald. Carbonadium implants aren't exactly conducive to good health. I'd expect him to be capable of anything the Crimson Dynamo could do strength and durability-wise. This car is also loaded with tech, Carbonadium Matrix Armor, and the headlights can produce lethal electric blasts." Offered Tony.
"What of the Woman?" Pressed Thor.
"She's a Sorceress of some description. I couldn't exactly pin down what she's working with without a more active scan and that would have tipped her off." I explained.
"She is a Cryomancer and also has some facility with weather magic." Added Doctor Strange.
"How'd you figure that out without tipping her off?" I asked.
"I do not mean to disparage your talents, but I am the Sorcerer Supreme." Smirked Doctor Strange.
"Right. So I suppose don't go shooting any ice magic at her. Thor, can you handle the weather?" Questioned Tony.
"Verily. Some petty conjurer of weather magics cannot hope to wrest control of the storm from the God of Thunder." Nodded Thor.
"Remember, we don't want to start trouble. We'll finish it if they bring it, but don't make the first move. I am concerned about the Crimson Dynamo tech, though. Do you think the Serbians got it from Doom?" Frowned Cap.
"It's possible. Doom could make something like it and he has clashed with the Crimson Dynamo in the past." Theorized Tony.
"It is also something he would be willing to part with. Victor always did see others' accomplishments as inferior to his own." Mused Doctor Strange.
"Knowing Doom, he also probably has a killswitch he implanted into all of the tech he gave the Serbs. No way Doom lets an ally have advanced tech without having some way to take it over. His ego couldn't handle it." I snorted.
"Aye. Doom is a vain man, though dangerous enough that his vanity may be warranted. Slightly." Agreed Thor.
"Just be ready in case of attack, but don't pre-empt." Ordered Cap.
And with that, Doctor Strange took down the privacy spell. Moments later, the car pulled into the Royal Palace. The buildings here were all white stone and stucco in a neopalladian style. The former residence of the Kings of Yugoslavia back before World War Two, the Palace was now owned by the Serbian State and used as the residence of the President of Serbia. General Aram wasn't exactly an elected leader, but he'd moved in after Milosevic had been escorted out, just like his Junta had moved into power after Milosevic had been deposed.
We were escorted into the main hall by the two agents, through the entryway with its black and white marble floors and priceless antiques, up a staircase lined with suits of armor, and into an office that was guarded by two Soldiers wielding Laser Rifles. The office itself was fairly sparsely furnished, with a desk, chairs, filing cabinet, and drinks cabinet being the only furnishings. That was deceptive, however, as the chairs were all nineteenth-century antiques with silk cushions, the desk was made of expensive teakwood, and the drinks cabinet was stuffed with luxury liquor brands.
Seated behind the desk in a leather-upholstered chair was General Aram. The man himself was a bit on the chubby side, older, and balding with a pencil-thin Moustache. His uniform was covered in various medals and ribbons and the epaulets were brocaded in gold. For all his attempts at subtlety in trying to create a Greater Serbia, the man himself wasn't very subtle at all. In fact, if you told me to picture a corrupt military dictator of a post-communist Balkan Nation in my head, I'd picture General Aram almost exactly.
"I understand you have had some concerns about potential dealings we have had with Victor Von Doom and Mors Cruentia?" Queried General Aram.
"We do, General. Mors Cruentia has recently been wanted by SHIELD and the UN Security Council for acts of terror." Nodded Cap.
"Yeah, and Doom isn't exactly at the top of the list of people that the UN is going to invite over for Christmas Dinner either." Added Tony.
"We know that Victor was here a month and a week ago and have reason to believe that he and Mors Cruentia are working in concert." Insisted Doctor Strange.
"Is that so? And what, pray tell, makes you think that the Government of Serbia is a party to any such agreement?" Asked General Aram.
"How about all of the knockoff Crimson Dynamo tech in your agent over there?" Pressed Tony.
"His partner also seems to be a competent Sorceress who deals in Cryomancy and weather magic. Mors Cruentia also deals in Cryomancy and weather magic." I added.
"Those are very serious accusations based on such circumstantial observations. I would think very carefully about what you say next." Intoned General Aram.
"Look, we're not looking to start trouble. We just want some information about what Doom and Mors Cruentia are up to. We think you might have an idea." Pointed out Cap.
"Know, however, that if trouble is brought to us, then verily shall we finish it." Insisted Thor, paraphrasing Cap's earlier order.
"Is that so? My intelligence service might have some idea of such a bargain, but I have to ask, what would be in it for Serbia in telling you?" Questioned General Aram.
"You want us to bribe you?" Blinked Cap.
"Call it an exchange of favors. I have a problem that you and your merry band of costumed heroes might be able to solve. If you should solve it, then I would be inclined to pass along any intelligence that my intelligence service might have on the subject of Doom and Mors Cruentia." Smirked General Aram.
"What problem?" I queried.
"Something has happened to the Town of Belovo near the border with Symkaria. The customs post and army base there have not responded to any communications for the last few hours and we have checked on the Symkarians to see if they have invaded, but our agents in Symkaria assure us that this is not the case. For a town that size to be rendered incommunicado means something of at least that level of seriousness has happened. Unfortunately, it will take me some time to mobilize troops after the recent. . .unpleasantness." Explained General Aram.
"And you want us to deal with whatever has seemingly attacked your Town?" Questioned Doctor Strange.
"Do this for me, and you will have the information you seek." Nodded General Aram.
"I mislike doing another's work for them. However, if this town is truly in need, I see no reason to deny such a request." Frowned Thor.
"As long as it gets us the info we're after, then I don't see why we shouldn't do this." Nodded Tony.
"All right, General. It sounds like you have yourself a deal." Agreed Cap.
"Excellent. Agents Cenkovic and Bogdanova will escort you to Batajnica Air Base where an aircraft will be waiting to take you to Belovo. Until then." Grinned General Aram, inclining his head in dismissal.
The two Agents we had previously been escorted to the Palace by escorted us back out of the palace and into the car. There, they drove us northwest out of the city for about fifteen miles before reaching the airbase, where an Antonov AN-Twenty-Six Turboprop Transport Plane was fuelling up to take us east to the town of Belovo on the Symkarian Border. Fifteen minutes later, we were in the air and headed east.
What we'd find when we arrived would be one of the less well-known inhabitants of the Marvel Universe. . .
XXXX
AN: The next chapter is already up on my Patreon, so check the link in the threadmarked post if you guys feel like throwing me a couple bucks to get chapters in advance. Everyone who does is super appreciated and I can't thank my patrons enough.
All right, so here we have the first part of the trip to Serbia. It turns out that Doom has been playing regional power games with more than just Mors Cruentia, especially since it's looking like the Serbs have gotten their hands on stuff like Reverse-Engineered Crimson Dynamo Tech. Just what those games are remains to be seen.
In the meantime, the Serbian Government is about what you'd expect. Paranoid of Westerners, hostile, and corrupt. General Aram, for instance, was a villain from Punisher War Zone in the early nineties where he used deniable assets in the Serbian Mafia to purchase a suitcase nuke for the purposes of destroying Sarajevo in the midst of the Bosnian War. He's more subtle about trying to get a Greater Serbia than Milosevic was, working through middlemen and the like, but he's still a bad guy.
Unfortunately, he has info that the Avengers need to get to the bottom of the Mors Cruentia and Doom Alliance. That means doing a deal to get that info. Fortunately for them, it's looking like something has wiped an entire town off the map or otherwise rendered it unable to communicate with the outside world, which is the sort of thing they would ordinarily be looking into anyway. This essentially is letting them kill two birds with one stone. It's just a shame they have to deal with a guy like General Aram to do it.
At any rate, the next chapter will be the arrival at Belovo.
Stay tuned.