The Avengers had split into two groups.
One was the Pro-Accords Avengers, led by Tony.
The other was the Dark Avengers, who had broken free of oversight.
Neither Tony nor Steve could say the other was wrong.
The Sokovia Accords offered a more stable Avengers team with legal enforcement powers, at the cost of government oversight.
Steve had seen the people Hydra had infiltrated into S.H.I.E.L.D. He had his own reservations, and no one could fault him for that.
Separating the Avengers from politics would do the most to keep these superhumans from becoming expendable political pawns, allowing them to act according to their own sense of justice.
The headstrong Tony had chosen to compromise because of the wounds his creation, Ultron, had inflicted on the world.
Steve, a soldier by background, had instead chosen to question the government because of the S.H.I.E.L.D. incident.
Neither side was wrong.
One stood for the justice of the majority, the other for the justice of the minority.
Sometimes they would clash, and sometimes they would agree.
"Ross wants to run for president," Mycroft said, seated on a comfortable sofa. "He advocates using superheroes as a brand to expand the United States' influence."
"Clearly, he failed." John sat opposite him.
A low table stood between them, with a Wizard's Chess set on it.
It was a game in which players commanded moving pieces to battle one another.
It was also something the Wizarding Kingdom had introduced.
Mycroft was already an expert at chess. Apart from the moving pieces, Wizard's Chess was not much different.
The room was elegant, with an air of aristocratic luxury.
An oil painting hung on the wall, complemented by a red carpet and a blazing fireplace.
Light streamed through brass casement windows that opened to either side.
This place, with