A/N: I'm back! To my mysterious guest, if you don't like my part about Griffin, tell me and I'll change it. Well here you go!

Chapter 9: Hawkeye

In the city, there stood a tower. It overlooked even the skyscrapers, acting like Mt. Olympus in Greece, reigning over the world of mortals.

This was the Citadel, the home of Ultron.

Inside the Citadel, a figure was locked into a chair. He was an old man in tattered rags, with the face of a hero. He was called Tony.

"Even your mere existence causes chaos, Avenger," said a voice in the dark. A wall opened to reveal Ultron. "But soon, there will be order." The old man could only cough in response. "These children you have kept hidden," said the robot as he approached, "they will be found."

"The kids are gone, machine!" Replied Tony. "Far away from you!"

"False. Like all humans, they are inherently illogical."

"What are you talking about?" He whispered.

The robot spread his hands and several screens appeared, revealing the battle that had taken place in the plaza earlier. "Observe."

"No!" Gasped the old man.

"You will now tell me everything you know about them, or you will learn the upper limits of the human capacity for pain." As he finished, he raised a hand which sparked with electricity.

Tony only glared defiantly.

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"James! James wake up!" Pym yelled. The boy opened his eyes and saw four figures standing above him. The first three were Pym, Gwen, and Azari. The third was the masked girl they had seen before. When she saw him move, the girl turned and moved quickly away.

"What... What happened? Where's Toruun!?" He exclaimed launching up and almost smacking said girl who was simply sitting outside his field of vision. The moment he saw her he relaxed, a feeling of relief inside him. She gave him a small smile when she saw he was alright. "Good. Now, where are we?" he asked as he looked around.

They were in some kind of destroyed factory. Dirt and junk lay scattered everywhere, casting deep shadows along the floor. Through holes in the ceiling, they could see abandoned brick buildings.

"I don't know," replied Azari, "but it's filthy."

"She saved us and led us here!" Exclaimed Pym as he stared at the masked girl in awe. She turned away, looking like she was... shy. Around Pym? Annoyed they could understand, but shy?

Movement from the shadows distracted them. Strange shapes began to move in the darkness. They wore metallic armor, but they couldn't see any defining features. Suddenly, they found themselves surrounded.

"Robot people!" shouted Azari. "This is bad, this is really bad!"

"I think you're right!" Said Gwen in a small voice. They unconsciously gripped hands.

"Mister Vision, wake up!" Yelled Pym fearfully. "We need a hand here! Do you shoot lasers out of your eyes or anything?"

"Hey!" Shouted for voice from above them. They all looked up to see a white haired boy standing with Laura beside him. "Quit messing around! We gotta keep moving!"

"Laura!" Shouted Toruun and James in relief. She leaped straight down and landed beside them, a small smile on her face. Pym ran forward and gave her a hug.

"You're alive!" He shouted.

"Are you alright?" Asked Azari.

"What's going on?" Asked Gwen right after.

"In order?" Said Laura tiredly. "I have a healing factor so you boys are stupid. As for Gwen, less so. These guys saved us after Blondie here led us into a butt kicking, and on the wrong side of the foot. Thanks for that by the way, Miss Warrior Queen. That's all I know."

Toruun looked away sadly, tears brimming her eyes. "What happened?" asked James into her ear.

"I wasn't strong enough," she replied in kind. "I lost my sword, and... and my father didn't come for me."

"We have to keep moving!" Ordered the white haired boy. "Ultron is wired into every one of his machines. We get spotted, we're toast." Laura turned and followed him, the others walking behind her.

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The group walked along a pipe through the sewer. Pym moved towards the white haired boy. "Quick question, who are you?" He asked.

He glanced at him before replying. "The name's Barton, but everyone calls me Hawkeye. That's my little sister Griffin. She's my second in command.

"Hawkeye? The Archer?" Asked the boy in amazement.

"Wait a minute," interrupted Azari. "Barton? Do you know a guy named Clint Barton?"

Hawkeye stopped before turning back to face the Wakandan. "Ok kid, how do you know my dad?"

"Kid?" He replied, distracted. "You're like a day older than us!"

"We think your dad was an Avenger, like our parents!" Replied Pym to the earlier question.

"Like your parents?" He asked in amazement. He wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't seen them fight. "Your parents were Avengers? That's not possible! My dad said- he said I was the last! He told me I would be the last Avenger!" He turned and glared at them. He suddenly lifted Pym up, much to his distress. "I've been here fighting all this time! Where have you been!"

"Let him go!" Shouted James as he yanked the boy away. "He didn't know!"

Hawkeye let his gaze sweep over them all before settling on Laura. "I thought I was the last one," he whispered as he turned away.

As they continued to walk, Pym moved towards Griffin. "Were your parents Avengers too?" He asked excitedly.

"No, my dad was the Human Torch. I was the result of one of his drunken one night stands. That's why my last name is Freeze instead of Storm. Plus, it fits me. Clint found me and adopted me when I was a kid." She suddenly clamped up, shocked that she had said so much to a total stranger, especially due to her certain... trust issues.. Hawkeye glanced back at her, an eyebrow raised.

"Oh, then is your real dad still alive?" Asked Pym with his eyes wide.

She just shrugged. "I don't know. I've heard some rumors that Ultron had gotten to him, along with the rest of the Fantastic Four. Others that he had escaped into hiding. I've even heard he was in Wakanda."

"Why would he be in Wakanda?" Asked the boy.

"Queen Ororo has set it up to be a kind of resistance in Africa. She was once part of a group called the X-men, and then she married the Black Panther. She turned the country into a haven for mutants, and after Utron took over, all meta humans. A lot of them all joined up with the Wakandan army, and that's why they've been able to hold out against Ultron's armies all this time." She realized that she had been talking way too much and clamped up before rushing forward to Hawkeye's side.

Laura and Azari looked at each other, a light in their eyes. They both knew the other was thinking the exact same thing.

Maybe they weren't orphans after all. Maybe their parents...

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"My father brought people to the underground after Ultron took over," explained Hawkeye as they entered a massive building. It appeared to be the ruins of Grand Central Station, and has been turned into the Scavengers' home base. "He taught them how to survive. We live under Ultron's rule, hiding in the cracks, staying out of sight. But the machines finally got my dad. Now I lead the Scavengers I keep them moving and I keep them safe."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Pym. "You can help us rescue Tony!"

"Who's Tony?" Asked the older boy.

"Your dad wasn't the last Avenger," replied Azari. "Tony was. You know, the Knight, Iron Man! He got captured by Ultron we're gonna go rescue him."

Griffin and Hawkeye glanced at each other before laughing. "Ya right," said the boy. "Sorry kid, Ultron doesn't keep prisoners. Iron Man or not, this guy Tony is dust."

"No," said a voice from behind them softly. They turned to see an old woman with glasses. She wore a green scarf and shirt with a brown skirt. "He's alive. If Tony was captured, Ultron has him in the Citadel."

"Tony's alive? Really?" Asked James quietly.

"Don't even listen to her, she's crazy!" Said Hawkeye without looking up.

"No!" Shouted James. "If there's a chance he's alive, we're going after him. We're going to this Citadel." He stepped forward and extended his hand. "We could use a hand."

"I've got better things to do than get disintegrated," he replied.

"Did your father give up this easily?" Asked James angrily.

Hawkeye launched to his feet. "If you bring up my father one more time, I will punch you in the face!" The two of them glared at each other before Laura stepped in between them.

"Woe there Tigers, take a deep breath," she said. She then turned and gave Hawkeye a look and he began to cower. She had him completely under her thumb.

"Fine!" He finally said. "Your funeral! I'll show you how to get there! After that, you're on your own." With that he pushed passed James and kept walking.

"Thanks, handsome," whispered Laura as he passed. He turned red and turned away. They both had a small smile on their faces.

end of chapter

A/N: well there! For all of you who keep complaining about the pairings, you can figure it out in this chapter! Please review!