"Ms. Maximoff, this is the security department of Los Angeles General Hospital. We have hired a professional security company to provide round-the-clock surveillance and ensure safety. Our network of health centers throughout Los Angeles also works closely with the Los Angeles Police Department and health services to provide housing, medical treatment, and care for immigrants, teenagers, the homeless, victims of domestic violence, and people with substance abuse disorders..."
Dr. Christina Galli's secretary smoothly led Wanda toward the room at the end of the corridor. Her tone was measured and unhurried, as though Wanda were merely another visitor on a guided tour. Wanda patiently listened on. She understood the secretary's unspoken meaning: the hospital had quite comprehensive security measures, Robbie Reyes's disappearance was not the hospital's responsibility, and the offered refund of medical expenses and compensation were exceedingly generous because the hospital could afford them.
"We... Ah!"
The corridor lights abruptly went out, and the secretary's bland introduction was suddenly replaced by a scream. Wanda instinctively turned around and saw the young secretary, who had been speaking so animatedly moments ago, lying in a patch of shadow. Wanda tensed. She reflexively reached out to cast a spell, only to see a massive figure emerge from the darkness, nearly filling the passageway. Even under the faint glow of the emergency lights, the exquisitely crafted golden armor, forged by the Milky Way's greatest artisans, still looked incomparably magnificent. Huge, precisely cut rubies embedded in the shoulder plates, breastplate, and helmet glittered brilliantly. The powerful joint Servo Motors made no sound as the Praetorian Guard silently approached his prey like a golden panther. His long halberd flickered with silent arcs of electricity. It was Asgardian technology; combined with its immense kinetic force, it was enough to let the already sharp blade slice through the