"Honey, I'm home!" Clint said as we entered the house
A long brown-haired woman came from around the corner. She wore a beautiful smile and had dark brown eyes. She wore a pink blouse and was very visibly pregnant.
"Hi. Company. Sorry, I didn't call ahead," Clint continued
She smiled as she approached Clint and welcomed him with a warm embrace. She grabbed his face and kissed him.
"This is an agent of some kind," Tony says turning to Thor
"Team, This is Laura," Clint said, introducing the woman
She smiled and waved
"I know all of your names," she said with a slight chuckle
Tony waved. Suddenly the sound of running footsteps could be heard coming down the hall to our left.
"Ooh, incoming," Clint said
All of a sudden, two children appeared. There was an older boy alongside a younger girl.
"Dad!" the little girl exclaims
"Hi, sweetheart! Hi, buddy! How are you guys doing?" Clint says while picking the younger child up
We all look quite dumbfounded to see Clint with the children.
"These are smaller agents," Tony says
"Did you bring Auntie Nat?" the young girl asks
Nat looks up, seeming to break herself out of the trance she was under by Wanda Maximoff
"Why don't you hug her and find out?" Nat says while smiling and picking up the young girl.
"Sorry for barging in on you," Steve says
"Yeah, we would have called ahead, but we were too busy having no idea you existed," Tony says
"Yeah, well, Fury helped me set this up when I joined. He kept it off S.H.E.I.L.D's files. I'd like to keep it that way. I figure it's a good place to lay low," Clint tells us
Nat walks up to talk to Laura and I join them and introduce myself. I smile and put my hand out to greet her.
"Hi, It's nice to formally meet you," I say
"It's nice to meet you too," she says with a smile
Suddenly Thor exits the room. Steve follows and I trail not too far behind.
"Thor?" Steve says while following him.
"I saw something in that dream. I need answers and I won't find them here," Thor says
He swirls his hammer then shoots himself up into the sky. I walk up beside Steve and he looks over at me.
"You okay?" he asks me
"Yeah, I'm good. The better question is, are you okay?" I ask
"The girl. She made me see something. It truly just set me off balance. I wasn't on my guard," Steve says
"It's not your fault. Those twins are way more enhanced than we were ready for," I say to comfort him.
"Thank you for helping me out of there," Steve smiles
I smile back and nod. We then head back into the house to join the rest of the group. When we get back Laura gives everyone a tour and assigns everyone a room to stay in for the remaining time that we are here. She mentioned that we would have to bunk up with each other due to lack of space. I chose to stay with Nat, after everything that happened today it felt like she really needed a friend. Steve and Banner chose to bunk up and Tony got to stay on his own since Thor left so suddenly. Nat and I entered our room and laid on the bed that was provided. We both sighed and looked up at the ceiling.
"You okay?" I ask
"I will be. I just took a pretty bad hit. That little witch made me see things that I didn't even think she was capable of," Nat tells me
"Do you wanna talk about it?" I ask
"It's okay. I'll be okay, but hey, let's talk about you. You did a good job out there, you really held your own," she says
"All thanks to you and Steve," I say
"I think you have some of it in you naturally, you just needed some motivation for it to come out. I'm proud of you, " She says while sitting up.
"Thank you," I say with a smile
"I think I'm gonna go take a shower. I'll see you later roomie," she says as she leaves the room with a towel in hand.
I laid in the bed for a while. I laid there just thinking about everything that had happened just in the past few days. It was all so new to me, the days were filled with so much chaos and conflict but in a way, I felt like this was where I was meant to be. I had a whole team by my side, supporting me in every decision I made. In a way, they felt like family. I got up out of the bed and looked outside the bedroom window. I saw Steve and Tony outside cutting wood. I headed downstairs and out the front door to join them.
"Hey, boys," I say while approaching them.
"You know Ultron is trying to tear us apart, right?" Tony says to Steve
"Well, I guess you'd know. Whether you'd tell us is a bit of a question," Steve replies
"Banner, the kid and I were just doing research," Tony defends
"That would affect the team," Steve says while putting the axe down
"That would end the team. Isn't that the mission? Isn't that the 'Why We Fight'? So that we can end the fight. So we get to go home!" Tony replies
Steve grabs a piece of wood and effortlessly pulls it apart with his hands.
"Every time someone tries to win a war before it starts, innocent people die. Every time," Steve says
Laura comes down from the porch
"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. Clint said you wouldn't mind, but our tractor doesn't seem to want to start at all," She says to Tony
"Yeah, I'll give her a kick," he replies
Tony looks at me and smiles
"Don't let Cap take from my pile kiddo" he says while pointing to the woodpile he was chopping.
Steve looks at me
"I'm sorry. What's up?" he says apologetically
"Oh nothing, I just saw you two out here and I had nothing better to do. Just happened to walk in at the wrong time I guess," I say
"Don't worry about it, Here," he says while handing me an axe.
"Take from Tony's pile," He continues with a smile.
"Are you upset with me?" I ask him
"Why would you think that?" He asks, stopping what he's doing.
"I helped on the Ultron research. We probably wouldn't be here if I didn't agree to help and told someone about Tony's plans," I say
"He's stubborn. He would have gone through with it anyways. Don't stress about it," he says with a smile.
"Now come on, let's chop some of this wood," He continues.
"Is now a bad time to tell you that I've never done this before?" I say with a smile
"Don't worry kid. I'll teach you," he says
Steve and I finished cutting the last bit of wood for Clint's family. Once we finished it had started getting dark and we headed inside to rest. When Steve and I got inside it seems as if everyone was there. I was surprised to look up and see Nick Fury standing in the kitchen. Of course, I had heard all the stories about him but in all the time I've been working with the Avengers, we had never formally met.
"Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself some time. My contacts all say he's building something. The amount of vibranium he made off with, I don't think it's just one thing," Fury says
"What about Ultron himself?" Steve asks
"Oh, he's easy to track. He's everywhere. The guy is multiplying faster than a catholic rabbit. It doesn't help us get an angle on any of his plans though," Fury replies
"Is he still going after launch codes?" I ask
Fury looks up in confusion.
"Yes, he is. I'm sorry, who is this?" Fury asks
"Didn't you hear Fury? That's the newest Avenger. She was working with us as a medical science technician but she is much more than that," Tony answers him, he smiles at me.
"A new Avenger? Well all right then. Don't get yourself killed," Fury says
I just simply nod and smile
"Yes sir," I say
"I like this one," Fury says with a chuckle.
I smile at him, Steve nudges me and smiles. I felt included.
"Ultron is fixated on the missiles, but the codes are constantly being changed," Fury says
"By whom?" Tony asks
"Parties unknown." Fury replies
"Do we have an ally?" Nat asks
"Ultron's got an enemy. That's not the same thing." Fury states
"Back in the day, I had eyes everywhere, ears, everywhere else. You kids had all the tech you could dream up. Here we all are, back on Earth with nothing but our wit and our will to save the world. Ultron says the Avengers are the only thing between him and his mission. And whether or not he admits it, his mission is global destruction. All this, laid in a grave. So stand. Outwit the platinum bastard," Fury continues.
"Steve doesn't like that kind of talk," Nat says with a smile
"You know what, Romanoff?" Steve says
She just smiles and shrugs
"So, what does he want?" Fury asks
"To become better. Better than us. He keeps building bodies," I say
"Person bodies. The human form is inefficient. Biologically speaking we are outmoded. But he keeps coming back at it," Tony adds
"When you programed him to protect the human race, you amazingly failed," Nat says
"They don't need to be protected. They need to evolve. Ultron is going to evolve," Banner adds on
"How?" Fury asks
"Helen... Oh-no," I say in fear
"There is only one person I know who is intelligent enough to create something that makes it possible for Ultron to evolve in that way. Helen Cho. I know Helen and I know she won't go down without a fight. We have to help her," I continue
"I'll take Natasha and Clint," Steve says
"All right. Strictly recon. I'll hit the nexus, I'll join you as soon as I can," Tony adds
"Hold on," I say
"Woah Woah kiddo, Where are you going," Tony says putting his arm in front of me.
"I'm going to help the team," I say
"I don't know about this one kid. Ultron is evolving and I don't want you getting hurt," Tony says
"If I recall correctly I'm pretty sure I'm one of the 3 out of the 7 of us that was able to outsmart the Maximoff's AND help get the rest of the team out of there safely. Also taking down a few of Klaue's men in the process. Helen is my best friend. I'm going." I state
Tony looks over at Steve and Steve just smiles
"All right. Go on." Tony says with a smile
I look back as I leave with Steve towards the Quin-jet. Tony looks at me and smiles
"I'm proud of you kiddo," he says
I smile back and enter the Quin-jet
Not too long after the Quin-jet had landed. All four of us got out and immediately began the mission. We landed a reasonable distance from the building. Steve and I ran in while Nat and Clint stayed back. The place was a wreck and it was very obvious that Ultron had been here. As I was running in my eyes widened as I saw my best friend lying on the floor with blood pooling out of her stomach.
"Helen!" I say while running up to her, Steve comes in behind me.
She was breathing heavily and her face was cut. Steve held her wound to make sure there was a good deal of pressure on it. She looked at me in fear.
"He's uploading himself into the body," she says
"Where?" Steve asks
She shook her head while taking deep breaths.
"The real power is inside the Cradle. The gem, its power is uncontainable. You can't just blow it up. You have to get the Cradle to Stark," she warns us
"First, we have to find it," Steve says
Helen looks and me and smiles weakly
"Go," she says
"I need someone to call in for medical assistance," I say into the comms while holding Helen's hand.
"On it," Nat replies
"Go save the world," Helen says
I let go of her hand and Steve and I runoff. I worried for her but I know she's strong. She's one of the strongest women I know.
"Did you guys copy all of that?" Steve asks into the comms
"We did," Clint confirms
"I got a private jet taking off across town. No manifest. It could be him," Nat adds
"I've got a truck from the lab," Clint says
"Above you two Cap. On the loop by the bridge. It's them," Nat says
"There's three in the Cradle, One in the cab. I could take out the driver," Clint says
"No, if that truck crashes, the gem inside could level the entire city," I say in a panic
"We need to draw out Ultron," Steve says
Steve and I had made our way to the bridge just in time. The truck was about to pass just under us and I knew that this meant we would have to jump. Steve jumps without and warning and I quickly run and jump to keep up with him.
"You jumped!?" Steve yells
"Was I not supposed to?!" I yell back
"Don't die!" was all he said before he made his way to the back door of the truck
I hear a big crash then see the door blast open with Steve still on it. He jumps back and almost falls off onto the road. The back of the truck was now wide open.
"Well, he's definitely unhappy. I'm gonna try and keep him that way," Steve says
"You're not a match for him, Cap" says Clint
"Thanks, Barton" he replies
Suddenly I see Steve get blasted onto the car behind the truck. He quickly gets up and grabs onto the side mirror of the truck driving beside him. He swings himself back onto the top of the truck and pushes me down onto the front right on top of the driver. Ultron suddenly appears and blasts Steve with a burst of energy.
"You know what's in that Cradle? The power to make real change. And that terrifies you," Ultron states.
"I wouldn't call it a comfort," Steve replies
Steve throws his shield at Ultron and Ultron jumps up and begins to shoot at Steve. Steve throws his shield into Ulton's chest and Ultron pulls it out and throws it onto the road. I climb down and begin to make my way to the inside of the truck to access the Cradle.
"I'm dropping in," Nat says over the comms
I enter the back of the truck and was greeted by two of Ultron's bots. I was able to get the first one down and off out of the truck.
"They're heading under the overpass. I've got no shot," Clint says
"Which way?" Nat asks
"Hard right, Now," Clint replies
The remaining bot whips me down and begins to shoot at something outside the back of the truck. I guess Nat was closer than I thought. I get up and continue to take on the last bot. I gain the upper hand and kick the last bot out onto the road. I look into the Cradle and see the face of a man. Well, at least it looks like a man. The skin on the man is red and a yellow gem is resting in the middle of his forehead, that must be the gem that Helen was talking about. I am still able to hear Steve fighting Ulton on the top of the truck, as I looked out of the truck I saw Steve pushing Ulton into the side of a moving train.
"I'm with the Cradle. Steve, are you okay?" I ask
"I'm good," he replies
"I'm going in. Cap, can you keep him occupied?" Nat asks
"What do you think I've been doing?" Steve says
Nat abandons her motorcycle and jumps into the back of the truck with me. Suddenly we feel the truck begin to life and Nat tumbles back. I grab her hand and keep her up as we are now in the air.
"Okay, the package is airborne. I have a clean shot," Clint states
"Negative Clint, Nat and I are still in the truck," I say
"Of course you are," he chuckles
"Clint, be ready," Nat says
"Clint we're sending the package to you," I say
"How do you want me to take it?" Clint says
"Dirty," I say with a chuckle
"And I get made fun of for my language comment," Steve adds
"Just be ready Clint," Nat says
"I lost Ultron. He's headed your way!" Steve says
"Nat we have to go," I say to her
"Get on top of the Cradle," says Nat
I look at her confused and then climb onto the Cradle. Nat quickly cuts the last rope that was holding the Cradle down. I hold onto the sides very tightly and Nat quickly plants a bomb on the wall of the truck and jumps holding onto the side of the Cradle as we slide out, landing into the Quin-jet. Within the blink of an eye, I see Ultron come up behind Nat and grab her by her ankle, dragging her out of the Quin-jet.
"Nat!" I yell
"Cap, You see Nat?" Clint asks
"If you guys have the package, get it to Stark! Go!" Steve replies
"Do you have eyes on Nat?" I ask
"Go!" Steve yells
Clint pushes forward on the steering and we blast forward heading for the Facility
"Damn it!" Clint says while smashing his hands on the steering wheel.
Clint and I quickly land at the Facility where Tony and Banner are waiting for us. We quickly unload it and get it into the lab so we can take a look at it.
"We lost Nat," Clint says to Banner
"She has to be alive, Ultron would be rubbing it in our faces if she wasn't," Tony says
"The Cradle is sealed tight, We're gonna need access to the program, break it down from within," Banner says
"Helen?" Tony asks
"She was hurt pretty bad when I saw her. I don't think she'd be able to help us." I say
"Any chance Natasha might leave you a message outside the Internet? Old-school spy stuff?" Tony asks Clint
"There are some nets I can cast. Yeah I'll find her," Clint says while heading downstairs
"I can work on some tissue degeneration, If you could fry whatever operational system Cho implanted," Banner says
"Yeah, about that," Tony says with his hand on the back of his neck.
"Tony. Don't even think about it," I say while looking him in the eyes
"You have to trust me," Tony says
"Kind of don't," Banner replies
"Our ally, the guy protecting the military's nuclear codes, I found him," Tony says
"Who?" I ask
"Hello," I hear J.A.R.V.I.S say
"Ultron didn't go after J.A.R.V.I.S because he was angry. He attacked him because he was scared of what he can do. So J.A.R.V.I.S went underground. Scattered, dumped his memory. But, not his protocols. He didn't even know he was in the until I pieced him together," Tony says
"So, you want us to help you put J.A.R.V.I.S into this body?" I ask
"In a way, yes," Tony says
Tony looks at me and smiles
"We need all hands on deck here. J.A.R.V.I.S has been beating Ulton from the inside without even knowing it. This is the opportunity. We can create Ultron's perfect self without the homicidal glitches he thinks are his winning personality. We have to." Tony says
"I believe it's worth a go," J.A.R.V.I.S says
Banner looks at me and puts his hand on the back of his neck.
"I'm in a loop! I'm caught in a time loop. This is exactly where it all went wrong " Banner yells
"I know, I know, I know what everyone's going to say. But they're already saying it." Tony says
"We're mad scientists. Let's just own it," I say
"It's not a loop. It's the end of the line." Tony says
Banner agrees and we begin to get to work.
"This framework is not compatible," Tony says
"The genetic coding tower is at 97%. You have got to upload that schematic in the next three minutes," Banner says
As we were putting the finishing touches on the upload, Steve walked in with the Maximoff twins behind him.
"I'm gonna say this once," Steve says
"How about 'none-ce'" Tony says
"Shut it down Tony!" Steve says
"Nope, not gonna happen," Tony replies
"You don't know what you're doing," Steve says while looking me in the eyes
"And you do?" I reply
"How do we know she's not in your head?" Banner asks referring to Wanda behind him.
"I know you're angry," She says in her thick Sokovian accent
"Oh, we're way past that. I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade," Banner replied
"Banner, after everything that has happened," Steve says
"It is nothing compared to what's coming!" Tony yells
"You don't want to know what's in there," Wanda says
"This isn't a game," Tony replies
Suddenly within the blink of an eye, Pietro runs around the lab and unplugs everything he can find that was leading to the Cradle.
"No, No. Go on. You were saying?" he says with one of the plugs in hand.
The sound of a gunshot is heard and it smashes through the glass panel that Pietro was standing on. It was Clint. Pietro fell through and smashed into the ground.
"Pietro!" Wanda exclaims
"What? You didn't see that coming?" Clint asks
"I'm rerouting the upload," I say
Steve throws his shield and suddenly Tony blasts him with his iron fist throwing him into a wall. Banner quickly grabs Wanda knowing that she would immediately try and use her abilities. Steve gets up and punches Tony at the same time he punches him, knocking them both back from the Cradle. Wanda pushes Banner off of her and uses her abilities to push him across the room. Suddenly, Thor burst into the room and jumps on top of the Cradle. He raises his hammer in the air sending a bolt of lightning down onto the Cradle.
"Wait!" Banner yells
The monitor in front of me begins to overload and sends out a warning for a power overload in the Cradle. Thor lets his hammer down and nothing can be heard for the first few seconds. In a matter of seconds, a burst of blue light breaks the Cradle open, pushing us all back. The android lifts up from out of the Cradle and crouches on top of it. It looks around and seems to be scared. I look up at it and its eyes meet with mine. Should I even call it an it? Was it a he? The android moved exactly like a human would. It was amazing. Or he was amazing as I should say. He looked at Thor in front of him and lunched forward. Thor pushed him out of his way and the android went flying through a panel of glass and was suddenly stopped when he caught a glimpse of his own reflection. Everyone rushed to continue to fight the android, assuming it was a threat. I put my hand up stopping everyone in their tracks. As the android looked at his own reflection, He developed a suit for himself. It was amazing to see. The things that he was capable of were endless. The android brought himself to ground level and began to walk towards us. Thor put his hammer down and everyone lowered their guard. Clint and Pietro joined us to see what was going on.
"I am sorry. That was, odd. Thank you," the android said while looking at Thor.
"Thor, you've helped create this?" Steve asks
"I had a vision. A whirlpool that sucks in all hope of life, and at its centre is that" Thor replies while pointing to the gem in the android's forehead.
"What? the gem?" Banner asks
"It's the Mind stone. One of the six Infinity Stones. The greatest power in the universe, unparalleled in its destructive capabilities," Thor says
"Than why would you help-" Steve is quickly cut off by Thor
"Because Stark is right," Thor says
"Oh, it's definitely the end of times," Banner adds
"The Avengers cannot defeat Ultron," Thor says
"Not alone," the android adds
"Why does your Vision sound like J.A.R.V.I.S?" Steve asks
"We reconfigured J.A.R.V.I.S's matrix. We created something new," I say, finally speaking up.
"You think I am a child of Ultron," the android states
"You're not?" Steve asks
"I'm not Ultron. I am not J.A.R.V.I.S. I am...I am," he says