The All-New, All-Different (All-Girl) Avengers

Natasha Romanov woke up in Avengers tower, disoriented and confused as to how she got there. Last thing she remembered, she and the rest of the Avengers had been fighting... someone... over the Cosmic Cube, but Natasha couldn't remember who, exactly. Thanos? Probably not. If he had gotten ahold of the cube, the consequences would have been far more dire than they appeared to be. Chances would've been good that Natasha wouldn't have woken up at all. It must've been a dream, Natasha thought. Still, it seemed so real...

Beyond that, everything just seemed... different to Natasha. She couldn't quite put her finger on why, but she felt like the world around her had changed. Like she saw it differently.

As much as this vague feeling was gnawing at her, she still had work to do. She made her way to the tower's war room, where several teammates were discussing things; Rescue, the Wasp, She-Hulk, Tigra, and the Scarlet Witch.

Even more doubts were planted in Natasha's mind. She could have sworn the current Avengers line-up was different, at least the Avengers currently staying at the tower. Still, there were so many active and current Avengers out there, and the team's line-up was constantly changing.

"'Morning, Nat," Janet called out. "We just got a message from Colonel Wentworth. Sounds like SHIELD wants you to dig up some dirt on a possible link between HYDRA and The Purifiers. Talk to us after you finish talking to her -- let us know how we can help. By the way, I just made a fresh pot of coffee if you need any."

Colonel Wentworth? That sounded right. She had been in charge of SHIELD for as long as Natasha could remember. And yet, somehow, there was still that seed of doubt in her head...

"Oh, um, OK. Thanks, Jan," Natasha said, trying to recall whatever it was that was bothering her so much -- unfortunately, she couldn't quite place it. She decided to put it out of her mind for now, and dialed up Commander Wentworth on a secure communications line.

"Black Widow. It's good to hear from you," said Deidre Wentworth, leader of SHIELD. "And may I say, you look fantastic..."

"Thank you, Colonel," said Natasha. While she still couldn't help but think something wasn't right, she couldn't help but feel uncharacteristically flattered by the compliment. "Thank you, Colonel. Janet filled me in -- you want me to look into a connection between HYDRA and the Purifiers?"

"That's right," Deidre answered. "As you know, the Purifiers have targeted mutants over the years, and HYDRA have always made no secret of their misogynistic agenda. We've intercepted some communications between HYDRA agents and members of the Purifiers regarding recent attacks on mutants; as you know, mutation only occurs in females. We can't let them hurt any innocent women..."

"Agreed," said Natasha. "I take it you want me to investigate?"

Colonel Wentworth nodded. "Precisely. I want you to see how high up these communications go, and if HYDRA and the Purifiers up to something."

"Understood," Natasha acknowledged. "I'll start right away."

"One more thing," Wentworth added. "Be sure to forward your findings to Jean Grey and Emma Frost of the X-Women. If the Purifiers are planning something, they'll want to know."

"I'll be sure to do that," Natasha agreed.