I didn't sleep but when we arrived at our destination, I knew exactly where I was before the Quinjet's door fully opened.
The sound of birds song whistled in my ears. Something I haven't heard in a long time whilst living in the city. The air just felt different here. The sun was shining and I appreciated its warmth radiating off my dark coloured suit. Normally it would bring a bright smile to my face and a warm feeling in my chest. This time, I just felt empty.
My worries had disappeared for a while and I lead the group up the familiar country paths into my brother's home that I could walk around in my sleep.
"What is this place?" Thor asks.
"Safe house." Tony answered but I smirked knowing they were all in for a surprise.
"Let's hope." Clint smiles.
"Honey? I'm home." Clint calls as we walk into his living room. It was open planned and had wooden furniture hand-painted, mostly by my brother who was the typical adult male starting projects and hardly finishing them.
Laura walked into the room as pregnant as ever. She had grown massively since I had last seen her but she was in her last trimester so it was to be expected. I had been helping her throughout although midwifery was not my strong suit.
She was surprised to say the least when all of the Avengers were stood in her home.
"Hi. Company, sorry I didn't call ahead." Clint smiles, happy to see his wife. I finally smiled once seeing my sister in law. I missed her. She was like a big sister I never had.
"Hey." She whispers, giving him a light kiss before greeting us all with a smile.
"This is an agent of some kind." Tony starts making me roll my eyes and hold his hand.
"Gentlemen, this is Laura." Clint introduces the boys.
"Rude. Your brother thinks your a man." Tony whispered making me pinch his side.
"She's my sister in law. I know her." I tease back.
"Still can't believe that means I'm slightly related to Barton." He fake gags making me roll my eyes again.
"I know all your names." Laura smiled and waved over.
I heard running and my smile brightened but screams of my son started to echo in my mind making it falter slightly.
"Oo, incoming." Clint chuckles.
"Hi sweetheart! Hi buddy! How you guys doing?" Clint greeted his kids and hugged them tightly.
"These are smaller agents." Tony tried to reason but the boys were shocked to say the least.
"Did you bring Aunty Nat and Kira?" Lilah asks.
"Why don't you hug us and find out?" Nat says and Lilah latches onto her while Cooper tightly embraces me. I lift my arms up slightly and wince but bless Cooper doesn't notice. Tony looks onwards sadly so my eyes wonder to my brother who holds the same expression. Steve holds nothing but encouragement and I hold his gaze as I slowly wrap my arms around Cooper. I smile once I realise he's ok.
"Sorry for barging in on you." Steve courteously says.
"Yeah, we would of called ahead but we were busy having no idea you existed." Tony remarks, giving me a pointed look we were talking later.
"Yeah, well Fury helped me set this up when I joined. Kept it off SHIELD's files, I'd like to keep it that way. I figured it was a good place to lay low." Clint told the others.
"Honey, I missed you." Laura brings me in for a cuddle which I gladly return.
"How's little Natasha?" Nat asks sliding in.
"She's...Nathanial." Laura cringed making me laugh.
"Traitor." Nat whispers to her belly.
Thor soon walks out and I silently ask Steve to follow him but then Steve doesn't return for a while and Thor neither. I leave them too it, knowing they need time. Just like I did. I'd talk to them later.
That night Tony and I lay in bed together. We had ended up luckily with one of Clint's guest rooms. Bruce and Nat taking the other and Steve ever so the gentlemen took the couch.
We were facing each other and I was stroking along his chest trying to fall asleep to the beat of his heart and the patterns I was creating.
"Do you wanna talk about it? I hate seeing you this way." Tony asks gently.
"I don't know. I dream every night but this...it felt too real. Even when I came out of it, I still thought it had happened. If I think about it for too long than it seems it." I sigh and bite my lip, trying to swallow the burning lump in my throat that felt as if it was going to consume me.
"I'm here for you." Tony whispers. Taking my hand in his and kisses it.
I gaze into his eyes, noting how similar ours are. We share the same chocolate brown. Yet Tony's had more of a golden spark if you caught them at the right angle.
"I was back in Stark Towers. Harley called out for me. I hugged him and as soon as he came into contact with me..." I stopped and tried to blink away my tears but the lump in my throat just got larger.
"Shh. It's ok. Take you time." Tony rearranged us so I was leaning on his chest and he could stroke my hair soothingly.
"I burned him. I hurt him. Our son. Every time I close my eyes I hear him scream. They haunt me. He was terrified of me. He called me a monster." I sobbed, finally letting go of my emotions.
"Baby, Harley could never hate you. If for whatever multi-universe this scenario happened in. I know for a fact our son wouldn't hate you. Harley is just like you. He wants to help people. He loves you. You were born to be a mother and he was born to be our son. Even without birth. We'll call him tomorrow and he will reassure you himself." Tony spoke softly and it did calm me slightly.
"Sometimes I just wonder if I did the right thing. With these powers I mean. A part of me, wants them gone but the other part of me is selfish and I want to protect the people I love but I don't know if I can have both." I cry my honesty shining through.
"How about this. I promise you that after all this, if you want I will find a way to get rid of these powers for you. Or if you choose to keep them, that's fine also. You don't have to decide anything now. Ok?" He asks me.
"I love you." I say turning to face him and pressing my lips against his.
"I love you too. Now try and get some sleep." He smiles and tucks me into his chest and I do eventually fall into a much needed sleep.
The next morning I ring Harley as soon as I wake up.
"Hi mum! Hi dad!" He answers excitedly.
"Hey buddy. How are you?" I ask.
"Not given Happy anymore grey hairs yet have you?" Tony asks making a start of a smile dance across my lips.
"No not yet. Well...that is until he finds the drone from Star Wars I tried to re-create. It just keeps zooming around like a dog on a sugar high." Harley admits making me laugh.
"You know I would have thought you would have learned something from myself trying to dive into AI and creating replica's but I guess your birth genetics are shining through. You're stupid." Tony jokes making Harley and I laugh aloud this time.
"At least my drone hasn't escaped the tower and is planning on eliminating the human population." Harley spites back.
"Alright. You got me. I'm wounded." Tony replies.
"How is that going by the way? Have you got a lead on Ultron?" Harley asks us.
"Not yet but hopefully we will in the next couple days." I say honestly.
"Days? I thought you guys would be back by tomorrow." Harley says shocked.
"I'm sorry Harls. I really am. It's just too dangerous for us and you to be together right now." I say softly, trying to soothe him.
"I understand. I just miss you. I love you." Harley says making tears bite my eyelashes.
"I love you more. Always remember that." I say.
"Of course I will your my mom." Harley replies making Tony smile at me and hug around my shoulders.
"We love you too kid. Speak to you later." Tony answers before we part ways.
"See I told you." Tony smirks and kisses my temple.
I play with Lilah to keep my mind off things and spend some much needed time with my niece and nephew the rest of the day. I also help Laura wherever I can. She's heavily pregnant and needs to rest. She now has enough help so she's taking it whether she wants to or not.
Nick Fury has decided to show up by dinner which I had made. We were all hanging around to speak afterwards.
"Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself 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." Nick tells us.
"What about Ultron himself?" I ask, drying some glasses.
"Oh, he's easy to track. He's everywhere. The guy is multiplying faster than a Catholic rabbit. It still doesn't help us get an angle on any of his plans though." Nick replies.
"Is he still going after launch codes?" Tony asks as he plays darts.
"Yes he is but he's not making any headway." Nick tells us.
"I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school on a dare." Tony bragged.
"Well, I contacted our friends at the Nexus about that." Nick says.
"Nexus?" Steve asks.
"It's the works internet hub in Oslo. Every byte of data flows through there. Fastest access on Earth." Bruce informs us.
"So what did they say?" Clint pipes up.
"He's fixated on the missiles but the codes are constantly being changed." Nick says.
"By whom?" Tony asks as a dart flies past him being shot none other than my brother.
"Parties unknown." Nick admits.
"We have an ally?" I ask.
"Ultron's got an enemy. That's not the same thing. Still I'd pay folding money to know who it is." Nick explains.
"I might need to visit Oslo. Find out unknown." Tony says.
"Well this is good times boss but I was king of hoping when I saw you, you'd have more than that." Nat speaks up.
"I do. I have you. 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 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." Nick speaks.
"Steve doesn't like that kind of talk." I tease making Tony smirk proudly at me.
"You know what Barton?" Steve teases back.
"So what does he want?" Nick asks rhetorically.
"To become better. Better than us. He keeps building bodies." I reply.
"Person bodies. The human form is inefficient. Biologically speaking, we're outmoded but he keeps coming back to it." Tony tells us.
"When you two programmed him to protect the human race, you amazingly failed." Nat spoke aloud.
"They don't need to be protected. They need to evolve. Ultron's going to evolve." Bruce told us.
"How?" Nick asked.
"Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?" Bruce asked and the room remained silent.
We immediately set into action.
"I'll take Natasha, Clint and Kira." Steve announces as we hear up.
"All right. Strictly recon. I'll hit the Nexus. I'll join you as soon as I can." Tony replies as we walk to the front door.
"If Ultron's really building a body." Steve questions.
"He'll be more powerful than any of us. Maybe all of us. An android designed by a robot." Tony spoke.
"You know I really miss the days when the weirdest thing science created was me." Steve tried to joke light heartedly.
"I'll drop Banner off at the tower. Mind if I borrow Ms Hill?" Nick asks, popping up.
"She's all yours. Apparently." Tony added making me bite my lip to stop me from smiling.
"What are you going to do?" I ask.
"I don't know. Something dramatic, I hope." Nick smirked before walking out.
"Stay safe." Tony tells me and places a firm kiss to my lips and I wanted nothing more to grab onto him and not let it end but we had a job to do.
"Always. I love you." I replied.
"Love you more." He smirks before we part.
We left at nightfall and arrived to our destination at sun rise. Steve hopped out first as always while Clint, Nat and I kept on going.
"Two minutes. Stay close." Steve spoke through coms.
"Dr Cho!" We heard Steve say a few minutes later so I listen in.
"He's uploading himself into the body." Dr Cho breathed out.
"Where?" Steve asks.
"The real power is inside the Cradle. The gem, it's power is uncontainable. You can't just, blow it up. You have to get the Cradle to Stark." Dr Cho rushed.
"First I have to find it." Steve spoke determined.
"Go." Cho replied.
"Did you guys copy that?" Steve asked us.
"We did." I reply, as I walked up to stand by my brother driving.
"I got a private jet taking off across town. No manifest. That could be him." Nat spoke up from the back.
"There, it's a truck from the lab. Right above you Steve. On the loop by the bridge. It's them. You got three with the Cradle, one in the cab." I inform Steve as I look out the jet window.
"I could take out the driver." Clint reports.
"Negative! That truck crashes the gem could level the city. We need to draw out Ultron." Steve tells us before jumping on the truck.
"Well he's definitely unhappy. I'm gonna try and keep him that way." Steve reported after he was nearly slammed to the busy highway.
"You're not a match for him Cap." Clint replies nervously.
"Thanks older Barton." Steve replies making me chuckle.
Clint flies us through low ground making the public go crazy as we follow the truck Steve is on. Steve seems to be struggling so I look back at Nat and she nods. Opening the bottom of the jet.
"I've got a window. Four, three, give them hell." Clint smirks as Nat and I clamber on two bikes and get released from the plane.
We race off through traffic and I spot a familiar shield making me smirk as I lean down to grab it.
"We're always picking up after you boys." I say making Nat laugh.
"They're heading under the overpass. I've got no shot." Clint tells us.
"Which way?" Nat asks.
"Hard right. Now." Clint tells us and we do so. Breaking into a small alleyway, shocking locals taking us right in front of the truck. Nat glides underneath it while I break hard so we're on either side.
Steve glances at me below and I take the chance to throw his shield up which he easily grasps onto. Ultron lifts up rubble on Nat's side making her break hard, I continue on as she speeds back up, taking the scenic root. Steve gets thrown off while cars smash around him but he soon races back up and jumps onto the back of my bike. Knocking off robots that fly by. I break hard and chuck him back on top of the truck but before long him and Ultron are in a public bus.
"Heading back towards you. So whatever you're gonna do, do it now." Clint reports.
"I'm going in. Steve, Nat can you keep them occupied?" I ask into coms.
"What do you think I've been doing?" Steve sasses back making me smirk as I abandon my bike and jump in the truck.
I start to try and override the truck but a sudden force pulls me back and I almost fall out. Once I look behind me I realise I'm flying.
"Ok package is airborne. I have a clean shot." My brother sounds making me halt my movements.
"Negative! I am still in the truck." I reply. I can't believe my brother also eliminated me.
"What the hell are you-" Clint starts but I cut him off.
"Just be ready. I'm sending the package to you." I order.
"How do you want me to take it?" Clint asks making me barely able to keep my laugh down.
"Uh, you might wish you hadn't asked that." I reply as I start cutting the ropes holding the carrier down.
"I lost him! He's heading your way!" Steve shouts over coms.
"Kit Kat we gotta go." Clint yells back.
I cut the final rope and place a bomb on the wall before holding onto the box as tight as I could and enjoying the ride as I use flight mode to send it right into the back of our own jet. However, just as the carrier is secure a strong hold goes onto my ankle sending me plummeting.
Something must have happened mid air because a hard blow was made to the back of my head and my world soon went dark.