The Avengers were all in Clint's house as he sat in the living room with his family. Tony threw darts, Natasha and Jo sat at the dining room table, Banner stuck to a corner, and Steve leaned against a wall.
"Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself time. My contacts all say he's building something. With the amount of vibrainum he made off with, I don't think it's just one thing."
"What about Ultron himself?"
"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" Fury explained.
"Is he still going after launch codes?"
"Yes, he is. But he's not making any headway."
"I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school on a dare!" Tony exclaimed.
"Yeah, well I contacted our friends at the Nexus about tha," Nick continued.
"Nexus?"
"It's the world internet hub in Oslo." Banner answered. "Every bite of data flows through there. Fastest access on Earth."
"So, what'd they say?"
He's fixated on the missiles, but the codes are constantly being changed?"
"By whom?" Tony asked. He flinched as an arrow sped past him, hitting the bullseye on the board. Clint slightly smirked.
"Unknown parties"
"Do we have an ally?" Steve asked.
"Ultron's got an enemy. That's not the same thing."
"Still, I'd pay folding money to know who it is" Natasha muttered.
"I might need to visit Oslo, find out who our unknown is."
"Well, this is good times boss. But I was kind of hoping when I saw you, you'd have more than that" Jo remarked.
"I do. I have you." Fury responded. "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 standing between him and his mission. And whether or not he admits it, his mission is global destruction. All this, laid in a grace. So, stand. Outwit the platinum bastard."
"Steve doesn't like that kind of talk"
"You know what Romanoff!" Steve groaned.
"So, what does he want?"
"To become better," Steve spoke up. "Better than us. He keeps building bodies."
"Person bodies. The human form is inefficient. Biologically speaking, we're outmoded. But he keeps coming back to it" Tony added.
Jo noticed Banner stepping towards the table. He was looking at the drawing of a butterfly Clint's daughter had made Natasha.
"When you two programmed him to protect the human race, you amazingly failed."
"They don't need to be protected," Banner muttered. "They need to evolve. Ultron is going to evolve."
"How?"
"Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?"
"I'll take Natasha, Clint, and Jo" Steve spoke as he attached his shield to his back.
"Alright, strictly recon. I'll head to Nexus and join you as soon as I can" Tony answered as the two walked towards the front door.
"If Ultron's really building a body, he'll be more powerful than any of us."
"Maybe all of us" Tony added. "An android designed by a robot."
"You know, I really miss the days when the weirdest thing science ever created was us," Jo remarked as she approached the two men. Steve nodded in agreement.
"I'll drop Banner off at the tower," Nick said as he slipped on his coat. "You mind if I borrow Ms. Hill?"
"She's all yours. Apparently," Tony grumbled.
"What are you going to do?"
"I don't know. Something dramatic I hope," Fury smirked as he spoke and then headed out the door.
Cap and Jo climbed onto the roof of a building as the quinjet flew off.
"Two minutes. Stay close." Steve ordered.
The two rushed into the lab, Jo glanced around, noticing the dead scientists and broken equipment.
"Doctor Cho!" Steve exclaimed, rushing over to the injured woman. They knelt before her, Jo grabbed a towel and applied pressure to her wound.
"He's uploading himself into the body," Cho gasped.
"Where?" Steve demanded, but Cho shook her head. He moved to get up but Cho stopped him.
"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." Cho explained.
"First, we have to find it."
"Go," Cho croaked.
"Did you guys copy that?" Jo asked as she and Steve moved through the building.
"We did" Clint answered.
"I got a private jet taking off across town. No manifest. That could be him."
"There, it's a truck from the lab" Clint spoke up, looking down at the highway below him. "Right above you Cap. On the loop by the bridge. It's them. Three with the cradle, one in the cab. I could take out the driver."
"Negative!" Steve exclaimed. "That truck crashes the gem could level the city. We need to draw out Ultron."
Jo and Steve made it to the highway above the road the truck was on. They waited for the truck to get closer before racing across the road and jumping down. They landed on the truck with a thud. Cap climbed down onto the back doors just as they were blasted open. They hit the ground with Steve on top.
"Well, he's definitely unhappy. I'm gonna try and keep him that way."
"You're not a match for him Cap, even with Jo's help"
"Thanks, Barton" Jo grumbled, the sarcasm in her tone was obvious.
Ultron blasted Steve on to the car behind them. He grabbed onto another car and flung himself onto the roof of the car.
"You know what's in that cradle?" Ultron asked. Steve and Jo hid behind his shield as Ultron shot another blast of energy at them. "The power to make real change. And that terrifies you."
"I wouldn't call it a comfort," Jo snatched the shield and threw it at Ultron. It bounced off the robot back to her.
"Hey, that's my move!"
"Then move a little faster old man!" Jo grunted as she rolled out of the way of Ultron's blow. Steve threw the shield this time and it got lodged in Ultron's chest.
"Stop it!" Ultron growled. He tossed the shield onto the road and blasted Steve onto the top of the cab. He struggled to climb back up.
Jo swung her arms around the robot's neck from behind and they wrestled. Ultron grabbed her arm and spun Jo around before picking her up by the neck. Jo glanced down in time to see Natasha on a motorcycle, who tossed her Steve's shield. She used it free herself and rolled out of the way as Ultron fell. Steve made it back up shoved Ultron back down just as he tried to stand. A blast of energy shot Jo onto the car following them. Before she could stand, Ultron lifted the ground causing the car to flip. Jo scrambled to her feet and moved out of the way of the flying vehicles. She jumped off a moving car and back onto the roof of the truck. She grabbed Ultron by the head as she flew through the air and flipped him. Steve caught the shield and brought it down on the platinum bastard.
Suddenly, the quinjet came around a building and Clint fired on Ultron. The guards who were still with the cradle now flew towards the quinjet.
Steve grabbed Ultron and threw him into a concrete pillar. The metal man flew back and he and Steve tackled each other, falling into a nearby train. Jo followed.
"I'm going in, can you guys keep him busy?"
"What do you think we've been doing?" Steve sighed as he dodged another blast.
Natasha jumped off her biked and into the back of the truck. Before she could do anything, the two robot guards grabbed the sides of the truck and lifted it into the air.
"Package is airborne, should I take the shot?" Clint asked once the truck was over water.
"Negative, I am still in the truck!"
"What the hell are you-"
"Just be ready" Nat ordered. "I'm sending the package to you."
"How do you want me to take it?"
"Um, you might wish you hadn't asked that," Nat remarked as she cut off the straps.
Jo ducked and kicked Ultron's feet out from under him. Wit in seconds he had her against the wall. Jo tilted her head, dodging another punch. She grunted in pain as one hit her in the side. Out of nowhere came a flash of blew and Ultron went flying. Red energy controlled the luggage racks, trapping Ultron on the other side of the train. Jo looked over at Pietro who winked at her. She couldn't stop the small smile from appearing on her face. The interaction did not go unnoticed by Steve, though he knew this was no time to bring it up.
"Please, don't do this" Ultron pleaded.
"What choice do we have?" Wanda asked. Ultron fired at Pietro who moved out of the way in time before he flew out of the train.
"We lost him! He's headed your way!" Steve exclaimed as him and Jo raced to the other side of the train. They found a dead conductor and saw the end of the tracks quickly approaching. The train went off the tracks, people held onto whatever they could.
"Cap, have you seen Nat?"
"If you have the package, get it to Stark! Go!" Steve ordered.
"Do you have eyes on Nat!"
"Go!" Jo screamed, trying to keep herself from flying off the train. "There are civilians in our path!" She shouted at Pietro who nodded before speeding off.
"Can you stop this thing?" Steve asked looking at Wanda. She nodded.
Jo watched as her friend shot red energy from her hands. She heard the creaking of the train as Wanda struggled to bring it to a stop, but she was successful. Once the train stopped people began to help one another off. Wanda and Jo rushed over to Pietro who was bent over panting.
"I'm fine, I just need to take a minute" He assured them, leaning against a wall.
"I'm very tempted not to give you one," Steve remarked.
"The cradle, did you get it?" Wanda demanded.
"Stark will take care of it."
"No, he won't!" Wanda insisted.
Jo didn't like the look on Wanda's face. "What is it?"
"You don't know what you're talking about, Stark's not crazy."
"He will do anything to make things right!" Wanda exclaimed. Steve looked at her for a moment before stepping back.
"Stark come in. Is anyone on coms?"
"Ultron can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it" Wanda explained. "Where do you think he gets that from?"
"I'm gonna say this once" Steve boomed as they entered the lab.
"How about nonce"
"Shut it down!"
"Nope, not gonna happen."
"You don't know what you're doing!"
"And you do?" Banner asked. "She's not in your head?" He motioned to Wanda as he spoke.
"I know you're angry- "Wanda began.
"Oh, we're way past that. I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade."
"Banner, after everything that's happened- "
"Is nothing compared to what's coming!" Tony shouted.
"You don't know what's in there!"
"This isn't a game!"
Pietro glanced at Jo and she knew exactly what he was thinking. She slightly smirked and nodded. Pietro sped around the room, turning things off and pulling giant plugs out of the cradle.
"No, no, go on. You were saying?" He asked. A gun went off and the bullet shattered the glass floor beneath his feet.
"Pietro!" Wanda exclaimed.
Clint placed his foot on Pietro's stomach, stopping him from getting up. "What? You didn't see that coming?"
A computer started to beep.
"I'm rerouting the upload!" Tony exclaimed. Steve threw his shield at the computer and Tony fired using the hand from his suit as the back attached itself to him. Steve attacked. Wanda moved to stop it but Banner wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"Go ahead, piss me off" He taunted. Jo grabbed Banner and pulled him off Wanda, shoving him aside.
Before they could do anything, else Thor came into the room and jumped onto the cradle. He raised his hammer and lightning appeared. He shot it down into the cradle. Once he stopped, the cradle exploded and Thor went flying. A man came out of the white smoke. His skin was a mixture of metal and red. He slowly rose to a standing position. He set his eyes on Thor and dove towards him. Thor grabbed him by his shoulders and threw the man through the glass window and into the living room. They all quickly followed, to find the strange man floating in midair. Staring at his reflection in the window. Grey cloths appeared on his skin as the man floated down towards them.
"I'm sorry. That was, odd" He spoke, now standing on the ground. "Thank you" He added nodding towards Thor. A golden cape appeared on his back.
"Thor, you helped create this?" Cap asked.
"I've had a vision. A whirlpool that sucks in all hope and life and at its center is that" Thor pointed towards the yellow stone on the man's forehead.
"What? The gem?"
"It's the mind stone. It's one of the six infinity stones. The greatest power in the universe, unparalleled in its destructive capabilities." Thor explained.
"Then why would you bring it- "
"Because Stark is right."
"Oh, it's definitely the end times," Banner remarked.
"The Avengers cannot defeat Ultron."
"Not alone." The man added.
"Why does your vision sound like Jarvis?"
"We reconfigured Jarvis's matrix to create something new," Tony answered.
"I think I've had my fill of new" Steve grumbled.
"You think I'm a child of Ultron" The man spoke as he and Tony circled each other.
"You're not?" Jo asked.
"I'm not Ultron. I am not Jarvis, I am...I am."
"I looked in your head and saw annihilation" Wanda spoke up, stepping towards the stranger.
"Look again,"
"Yeah, her seal of approval means jack to mean" Clint sneered.
"Their powers, the horrors in our head, Ultron himself, they all came from the mind stone. And they're nothing compared to what it can unleash. But with it on our side- "
"Is it?" Jo interrupted. "Are you? On our side?" She asked looking at the newcomer.
"I don't think it's that simple"
"Well, it better get real simple real soon" Jo demanded.
"I am on the side of life. Ultron isn't. He will end it all and- "
"What's he waiting for?" Tony asked.
"You."
"Where?"
"Sokovia. He's got Nat there too" Clint answered.
Banner stepped forward with a dark look in his eyes. "If we're wrong about you, if you're the monster Ultron created you to be..."
"What will you do?" Vision asked.
But Banner didn't answer him.
"I don't want to kill Ultron. He's unique and he's in pain. But that pain will roll over the Earth. So, he must be destroyed. Every form he's built. Every trace of his presence on the net. We have to act now. And not one of us can do it without the others. Maybe I am a monster, I don't think I'd know if I were one. I'm not what you are and not what you intended. So, there may be no way to make you trust me. But we need to go."
The room fell silent and Thor looked a bit awkward at the sight of this man holding out Thor's hammer. He took it, and the man walked away. No one knew what to say.
"Right. Well done" Thor patted Tony on the shoulder before walking off.
"Three minutes," Steve ordered. "Get what you need."
Jo changed into fresh clothes and strapped on clean weapons. She made sure she had extra bullets and her favorite knives. She was about to meet up with the group when Pietro hesitantly entered the room.
"I came to- "
"All is forgiven" She quickly said. Pietro relaxed. He held out his arms and Jo rushed into them. He held her tightly before Jo pulled back and kissed him. She never realized how much she had ached for him till now.
"I have missed you every day" He whispered. He moved his lips to her cheek and then her jaw, before leaving a trail of kisses down her neck. "When this is over you and I are going far away. I'm going to take you on a real date."
"Where?" Jo whispered. She tugged on Pietro's locks, bring his lips back to hers.
"Anywhere you want to go my luchik (Russian for little ray of light)" He answered before kissing her again. Jo pressed herself closer to him, taking in every moment of this and burning it into her memory. Never wanting to forget this feeling. She felt safe and loved in his arms. Forget saving the world, if he asked her to run away there was a part of her that might have said yes.
"I love you,"
"And I you." He answered. "We will make it through this, I promise."
Jo didn't answer because she knew that was a promise that couldn't be kept. She kissed him all over his face. Pietro chuckled as Jo kissed him on the nose.
"Hey lovebirds!" The two jumped apart and Wanda chuckled. "You are lucky it was I who caught you and not the Captain."
Jo rolled her eyes and walked over to Wanda. The two embraced.
"I like the jacket," Jo commented. She adjusted the collar on Wanda's red leather jacket. Wanda just rolled her eyes.
"I'm glad the three of us are together again" Jo smiled as she spoke. Wanda nodded in agreement.
"Come on, we better go before your father sends a search party," Wanda stated.
"Do you think he likes me?"
"No!" Both Jo and Wanda laughed as they walked out of the room with their arms linked.
Everyone got on to the quinjet exactly three minutes later. Tony fired up the engine and put in the coordinates for Sokovia.
"Ultron knows we're coming,"Steve spoke, looking at his team.
" Odds are we'll be riding into heavy fire, and that's what we signed up for. But the people of Sokovia, they didn't. So our priority is getting them out. All they want is to live their lives in peace, and that's not going to happen today. But we can do our best to protect them. And we can get the job done, and find out what Ultron's been building. We find Romanoff, and we clear the field. Keep the fight between us. Ultron thinks we're monsters and we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him. It's about whether he's right."