Bed of Roses [N. Romanoff]

Chapter 16

She scooted a little closer, breathing at the back of Clint's neck as she watched him rapidly type at the old keyboard.

"Hand me those headphones," Clint outstretched his hand, not bothering to look away from the screen.

Bailey slumped over, and grabbed at the headset, pushing them over to his hand.

"I really hope she's dropped something," Bailey bit as her lip and wrung her hands together, nervously watching the man type.

"Me too kid..." he sighed, and clicked open a new window.

Natasha woke up on the hard floor, something she didn't remember falling asleep on. In front of her, stood Ultron as he mixed at molten metal, using his hand to stir it around. She slowly raised her head, a pounding following and her eyes filled with tears from the heat.

"I wasn't sure you would wake up," the deeply terrifying voice of Ultron spoke out to her. "I hoped you would. I wanted to show you." His eyes looked up to her briefly, "I don't have anyone else."

She wanted to scream at him, shout that it was his own fault. She wanted to know where Clint was, where Bailey is, she wanted to know if they had the Cradle. Nat didn't want to be here at all.

But she knew better than to do so.

She tried to lift herself up, bring her body up by her arms and balancing on them, it was too painful. She had to grunt and groan, brain fuzzy and body pounding in pain.

"I think a lot about meteors: the purity in them. Boom!" his head shot up, "The end, start again. The world made clean for the new Man to rebuild."

Natasha shot a disgusted look at him, scared yet so brave, she wanted to push him into the furnace next to him. She wanted to actually hear what he was saying without her blood boiling and ears ringing.

"I was meant to be new," he growled at her as if it were her fault, the Avengers fault. "I was meant to be beautiful," he looked up to the gods with a pleasurable pride on his face, but fear and anger only struck Nat's'.

"The world would've looked to the sky and seen hope, seen mercy. Instead, they'll look up in horror," which was what he saw on the Spy's face, he watched the horror as she pushed herself further from him and up against the wall.

"Because of you," he took a threatening step at her, but she did not flinch.

"You've wounded me," Nat shook her head, trying to get further from him, "I give you full marks for that."

"But, like the man said, what doesn't kill me..." he stopped walking towards her.

A red hand broke through his head, yanking it off and caused the body to crumble to the ground. Natasha's heart rate spiked, and fear definitely shone in her as she watched Ultron murder himself. She gasped and shot back, besides the pillar and further into the cage. Pieces of metal fell around her, and she shuffled further with groans and gasps o pain, clambering to get away from him. The end landed next to her.

"... just makes me stronger," He stepped closer to the panting woman, trying to bring her own normal breathing pattern back.

With a swift move, he closed the gate to leave the broken Woman to herself, facing her own fear and nightmare all by herself. Leaving her with scared thoughts, and a racing mind.

"And you've already made the mistake that could cost you the most," he hummed with a cheer, and if he were able to there would be a grin plastered on his face.

"What mistake?" She croaked our, glaring at him from the other side of the cell bars.

"You've fallen in love."