PURE AND TAINTED ( wanda maximoff )

twenty-one → phasmatos maltos

PURE AND TAINTED
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
( phasmatos maltos )

"I'M SORRY, I WAS ASLEEP." The voice was masculine and slow, like a child testing its brand new vocabulary. There was something that just didn't feel right about it. It didn't sound normal, or human for that matter. "Or... I was... dreaming?" They saw the voice belonged to one of the Iron Legionnaires, limping into the room. Its limbs were barely being held together, and Aline could see the mesh of wires and cables beneath its metal chest. Oil was spilling out from behind it, creating a thick inky path, and sparks occasionally flew from its body.

Tony pulled out his phone, tapping the screen repeatedly. "Reboot Legionnaire, we got a buggy suit," he said in a quiet voice.

"There was a terrible noise... and I was tangled in... in strings."

Aline forced herself up from the couch, rolling her wrists. Something wasn't right. Why wasn't the suit rebooting? And when did Tony change the voices for it? As far as she knew, all the Legionnaires had the standard voices that said maybe three different sentences. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tony was still tapping at the screen.

"I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy." Nothing about him seemed like he was remorseful about killing whoever it was. But that made her think 一 who was still in the building with them? She was acutely aware that everyone had left, and the only people left on the floor was them, including the Legionnaire.

"You killed someone?" Steve asked. He too had stood, taking a careful step forward.

She could have sworn it shrugged. "Wouldn't have been my first call, but down in the real world, we're faced with ugly choices." It scanned its glowing eyes across their faces, and Aline felt like it had stared at her longer than the others.

"Who sent you?" Thor demanded.

"I see a suit of armor around the world." The voice that spoke was no longer the Legionnaire's but one that was eerily familiar. It was Tony's. Aline slightly turned her head to look at the shock written across not only Tony's, but Bruce's face as well.

Bruce's lips parted in surprise. "Ultron."

"In the flesh. Or, no, not yet. Not this... chrysalis." It lifted one of his hands, tracing over the broken fingers and exposed wires. "But I'm ready; I'm on a mission."

Aline took a step forward, lifting her chin up. "What mission?" she growled.

"Peace in our time."

In that moment, more Legionnaires shot through the glass walls behind it. They flew in their direction, eyes glowing bright blue. The moment she saw them crash through the glass, Aline lifted both her hands up defensively. "Phasmatos maltos!" she casted, forcing the coffee table before her to shoot up. The robot heading towards her and Steve crashed into it, but that didn't stop it. It continued to ram into the table, sending both Aline and Steve backward.

Aline spun through the air, her back harshly hitting the floor. She let out a groan, feeling her claws start to sink into the wooden floor. "Not now," she hissed under her breath. "Cool down, Ashford." She rolled onto her stomach, and forced herself to stand. She was more than sure that she had stepped on some glass, for her feet were hurting more than they should.

One of the robots had aimed its blaster at someone hiding behind the bar, and she charged it. She bared her fangs and threw herself onto it, her chest hitting its back resulting in the two falling over. Aline pinned it to the ground, pressing her hand against its neck. With little strength, she used her free hand to dig into its chest. Her fingers grasped onto something and she pulled quickly, ripping out its large power source. The robot beneath her squealed like it was in pain before its eyes faded to black and relaxed.

The brunette looked around, seeing Steve somewhat struggle with one of the robots. He had his arms around its neck, pounding against its metallic skin. When the robot purposely crashed into the wall, Steve fell. "Hey, asshole!" she shouted, catching its attention. It whirled towards her and she squeezed her fist. The Legionnaire started to shake and convulse intensely before it stood as straight as an arrow. It fell to the ground with a loud CLANK! and Aline walked towards it, gripping its head between her hands. With a single pull, it came off easily.

The moment the head fell from her fingers, Aline slouched against the fallen couch. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins but now it was slowly dissipating, making her feel the sudden ache in her feet. Because the tribrid had neglected to put her heel back on, or protect her feet at all, she knew that small glass shards were digging into her skin and creating bloody footprints everywhere she walked. Small cuts dotted her arms, but she'd heal immediately if she got a little blood in her. Hopefully someone had restocked her blood supply in the fridge.

Aline slowly made her way back to everyone, slowly regrouping with them as she panted. There was a large rip of her dress along her midsection, but she didn't try to cover it. She looked at Tony, giving him a look and silently asking if he was okay. When he gave her a nod in response, she nodded as well and looked over to where the main Legionnaire was 一 Ultron, Bruce had called it.

"That was dramatic," it sighed. "I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to evolve?" He picked up one of the Legionnaire bodies on the floor. "With these... these puppets?" Ultron easily crushed its head, its mask popping out and making a metallic thud against the floor. "There's only path to peace: the Avengers' extinction."

In a fit of rage, Thor tossed his hammer at the robot. It crashed harshly on the wall behind him, smashing it into several pieces. The god held out his hand and Mjölnir flew back to him. However, Ultron's disturbing voice was still speaking however, sending chills down Aline's spine.

"I had strings but now I'm free."

A/N: so just a heads up, i might not
be updating ANYTHING for a while
because there's a huge ass fire in
california & we may or may not
be evacuated