Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men or any other Marvel characters. The only thing that is mine is the plot.
A/N: Three more months have passed, and Scott is still Captain America. He has been using his free time to look into his past, in hopes of finding out about his family. This story will tell the tale of a new origin for the X-Men's first leader, the man known as Cyclops.
The Makings of a Hero
Chapter.7. – Enter Ultron
The elevator doors open, and a laughing Scott and Jennifer step out into the lobby."You're kidding, right?" Scott asks, as they walk towards the front door.
"No; I'm completely serious. The Thing and Mr. Fantastic came crashing through my bathroom ceiling just as I was stepping out of the shower. I swear that I actually saw Thing blush." Jennifer says. "That was probably the most embarrassed I've even been in my life."
Scott hands his ticket to the valet, who runs off to get their car. "Wow. How did the Invisible Woman react when she found out?" He asks.
"I think Mr. Fantastic slept in his lab for a week." She replies.
"Ouch."
The car pulls up, and Scott assists Jennifer into her seat. Then he walks around, tips the valet, and gets in. He pulls out into traffic, and starts heading back towards the Baxter Building.
"What's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you?" Jennifer asks.
Scott's appearance gets serious, as he thinks. "That's a good question; I don't really know."
"Oh, come on; there has to be something that happened to you that was embarrassing." She says, placing her hand on his knee.
"I guess the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to me would have to be this one incident during my military training. I was going through a battle simulation with a female instructor, while our department head supervised. Anyways, I had just pulled the pin on my grenade, and was just about to throw it, from behind our cover, when a piece of debris clipped my hand, causing me to release the grenade too early. I realized that we were now in the blast radius, so I tackled my instructor, trying to get her out of the way. It was only training, so it was only a smoke grenade, but it was instinct to do it. Well, when the smoke cleared, I found myself on top of her, with my face firmly planted between her legs. I never quite lived that down, and she refused to lead any more battle simulations that I was a part of."
"How long were you in the military?" She asks.
"Ah, five years." Scott replies, realizing that he's going to have to be careful just how much he reveals to her.
"Why did you leave?"
"Well, the opportunity arose to work with Tony Stark, and I took it."
They pull up to the Baxter Building, and Scott turns off the car. He steps out, walks around to the passenger side, and helps Jennifer out.
"Thank you for dinner." She says.
"It was my pleasure. I had a really good time tonight. It was nice to finally get to know you a little better." Scott replies with a smile.
"Well the night doesn't have to end just yet." She says, inching closer to him. "You could come upstairs for...coffee." She tilts her head to the side, and bites her lower lip.
Scott opens his mouth to reply, but a nearby explosion interrupts him, and rocks them both. He looks in the direction of the explosion, and says, "That came from Central Park." He turns back to Jennifer, places both hands on her shoulders, and says, "I gotta go; you get yourself to safety." He runs around to the driver's side. "I'll call you." He calls out, before driving away.
He hears a loud thud behind him, and sees a shadow sail by overhead. He looks in the rear-view mirror, and doesn't see Jennifer anymore; so he figures that she took refuge in the Baxter Building.
Not long after, he pulls up, just outside the Avengers mansion, and can see several Avengers heading across the street and into Central Park. He pops the trunk, grabs his shield and costume, hops a stone wall, and changes. He then steps out onto an open path, and is nearly knocked over by Hawkeye, as he comes sailing through the air and lands several feet away.
Scott rushes to Hawkeye's side. "Hawkeye! Are you alright? What's going on?"
"Cap? Thank God you're here." Hawkeye says, standing up with Scott's help. "We got real trouble; Ultron."
"Ultron?" Scott asks, shocked.
"Yeah. He crashed a ship right in the middle of Central Park, and has an army of drones with him. I sent out a call to all Avengers, both active and reservists, in the area, before I came out."
"Good call, Hawkeye." Scott says, as they make their way to the battle. "What is Ultron doing? He's never been one for an offensive approach; he usually likes to set traps and show us how smart he is."
"Tell him that." Hawkeye says.
"Captain, what are your orders?" Vision asks, as he floats down next to Scott.
"Vision, patch me into everyone's communicators." Scott says, surveying the battle.
"Captain, there are non-Avengers fighting here as well." Vision says.
"Well, if there's any way to communicate with them too, then connect me to them as well; if not, then I hope they have enough sense to figure out what's going on." Scott replies.
"It is done, Captain. You can now address all the Avengers, as well as the Fantastic Four; I'm afraid that Spider-Man, Daredevil, and She-Hulk will not be able to hear you, though." Vision says.
"That's good enough, Vision; thank you." Scott says, before tapping the side of his mask, and activating his built-in communicator. "Alright, everyone listen up; this is Captain America. I have a plan, and I'm going to need everyone's cooperation on this one."
"Invisible Woman, if you could, please erect a shield around the park, so that none of Ultron's drones can get out into the city." Scott says.
"Will do Captain." He hears her reply over his communicator.
He looks up, and sees the air shimmer. "All ranged fighters, form a perimeter and keep the drones contained. All heavy hitters, you're the first wave; drive them back. Everyone else, start ripping this army apart." Scott says, adjusting his shield. "Oh, and bring me Ultron's head."
Hawkeye runs off to position himself, and Vision is about to fly away, but Scott grabs his arm. "Vision, have you seen Thor, Iron-Man, or Yellowjacket?"
"Iron-Man is on the other side of the park, and Dr. Pym is at a conference in Denver. I have no clue as to the whereabouts of Thor." Vision replies.
"Okay. I have a special assignment for you, Vision. I need you to keep in touch with Invisible Woman, and let her know when and where she needs to drop her shield to allow reinforcements in, or casualties out."
"Acknowledged, Captain." Vision says, as he flies away.
Scott takes a couple of moments to observe the battle, and sees that the drones are being pushed back into a large group. Adjusting his shield one last time, he takes off at a run and plows into the drones, smashing them until they are motionless at his feet.
Suddenly, he is grabbed from behind and lifted into the air. He is unable to strike at the drones holding him, and feels himself being passed from drone to drone, until he is unceremoniously dumped into an open area.
"Ah, Captain America." Ultron says, approaching Scott. "You shall be my first victim today. And with your death, the battle efficiency of the other so-called heroes will drop by 72.68%; guaranteeing my victory."
Scott picks himself up off the ground, and sees that he has been deposited in the center of the battle, and that he is surrounded on all sides by drones. He starts to back away, circling the area, not allowing Ultron to get any closer. "What gives, Ultron? This isn't like you. Did you run out of brilliant ideas, and decide to try your hand at a full frontal assault?"
Ultron stops in his tracks. His eyes flash, and he says, "Error: Your vocal patterns do not match my files of Captain America." Another flash. "Conclusion: You are not the real Captain America."
"Really? Well, if I'm not the real Captain America, could I do this?" Scott says, as he takes a couple of steps forward and throws his shield directly at Ultron.
At the last possible second, Ultron dodges; but not enough, as the shield connects with his left shoulder joint, and cuts cleanly through, severing the arm, before bouncing off the back of a drone, and lobbing up in the air, where it is caught by Scott.
Ultron looks down at his, now, severed arm, then back at Scott. "Observation: Subject moves and fights like Captain America." He lifts his right arm, and points it, palm out, at Scott. "Conclusion: Terminate, and determine validity of identity posthumously."
Suddenly, a beam of energy fires out from Ultron's palm, and Scott has just enough time to raise his shield to protect himself. The beam keeps coming, and Scott starts sliding backwards , as Ultron approaches. The force of the beam is so incredible, that Scott can feel his knees buckling.
Just when he thinks that he can't take it anymore, a lightning bolt strikes Ultron, and stops the beam. Scott looks up to see Thor plunging towards Ultron, hammer first. With the reflexes only an android can have, Ultron jumps out of the way, as Thor crashes into the ground.
Thor stands up, and says, "Vile creature, I hath had enough of thee. It is past time that thou be sent to the netherworld for good; and I, Thor, shall smite thee." He lifts Mjolnir above his head, and starts twirling it at incredible speed.
Scott notices that Ultron isn't moving, and seems to be waiting for Thor to strike. It's then that he sees that Ultron's chest plate is partially open, and there is some kind of energy build up behind it. "Thor! No!" Scott shouts, but it's too late as Thor releases Mjolnir directly at Ultron's chest.
In the blink of an eye, Ultron's chest plates open up to reveal a larger version of Iron-Man's repulsors, which fire a beam at Mjolnir. For a split second, the hammer seems to hover in mid-air, before reversing course, and knocking Thor in the side of the head.
The Thunder God collapses, unconscious; his hammer falling to the ground next to him.
"As you can see, Captain America; I have accounted for everything. Even the mighty Thor is powerless to stop me. Come now, and accept your death; I shall make it quick and, relatively, painless." Ultron says.
Scott raises his shield and charges at Ultron. He dives to the right, as Ultron unleashes another blast from the repulsor, and comes up swinging his shield at Ultron's left side. It smashes the exposed arm socket, sending sparks flying, and knocking Ultron sideways. He tries to take advantage of Ultron's stumble and smash the repulsor, but Ultron is too fast, and recovers quickly enough to deflect the blow with his right arm, before swinging it back, and punching Scott in the side of the head; sending him flying through the air, to land several feet from Thor.
Scott manages to stand up, but is immediately lifted off his feet by Ultron, who turns Scott to face him. "Query: Why do you still resist? Your defeat is inevitable. You should just accept it and go to your death humbly."
"When are you going to learn, Ultron? How many times are we going to have to beat you before you realize that you'll never win?" Scott says, as he brings his shield up quickly, striking Ultron in the chin, knocking his head back, before smashing his right arm away; causing him to drop Scott.
Scott rolls away, and throws his shield at Ultron's right shoulder, hoping to duplicate his earlier maneuver; but instead, Ultron catches the shield with his right hand. "You will find that I learn rather quickly, Captain America. The same move will not work on me twice." He tosses the shield over his shoulder and into the sea of drones. "I've decided that I no longer wish you a quick death; I shall make it long, and very painful."
Ultron charges at Scott, who tries to roll away, but is not fast enough and gets kicked in the stomach. Scott clutches his stomach with his left arm, but doesn't even have time to catch his breath before Ultron kicks him in the back, flattening him to the ground. Ultron then steps on Scott's lower back, pinning him there, and bends down until his face is next to Scott's head. "A quick increase in pressure, and I'll shatter your spine, paralyzing you from the waist down. Then I can take my time, and slowly dissect you until you are begging for death."
"It'll be a cold day in hell before you ever hear me beg, you bucket of blots." Scott says, struggling to get free.
"Have it your way then." Ultron says, standing back up. "Say good-bye to the use of your legs."
"Let's not." A female voice says, then a loud clang is heard, and Ultron is knocked off Scott's back. Someone grabs Scott's shoulder, lifts him up, and places him on his feet. "I think this belongs to you." His shield is held out in front of his face.
He accepts the shield from his rescuer, and, even though he's never met her in person, recognizes She-Hulk. "Thanks." He says.
"The Incredible Hulk was unable to defeat me. What makes you think that an inferior version will fare any better?" Ultron says, having picked himself back up.
"I'll show you 'inferior'!" She-Hulk shouts, charging at him.
As Scott tries to catch his breath, he watches She-Hulk pound away at Ultron, and it's then that he realizes that she isn't wearing any kind of uniform, but the tattered remains of a tiny purple dress and underwear.
Quickly, Ultron gets the upper hand, and manages to grab She-Hulk by the throat; holding her at arm's length, while she tries to break free by smashing his arm. Scott notices that She-Hulk's previous attacks have actually dented Ultron's chest plate enough that the seam in the middle is now visible. He decides to charge at Ultron, and drives the edge of his shield right into the seam. "What?" Ultron asks, turning to look at Scott, but not releasing She-Hulk.
Scott pushes against the shield, trying to pry open the chest plate. "A useless effort, Captain; you lack the physical strength for that." Ultron taunts.
She-Hulk reaches out with her right hand, grabs the edge of the shield, and starts pulling it towards her. With a load bang, half of Ultron's chest plate rips free.
Ultron immediately drops She-Hulk, and strikes out at Scott, punching him directly in the chest. Once again, Scott is sent flying through the air, and lands next to Thor. He lifts himself to his hands and knees, but can't manage to stand up. He hears another bang, and assumes that She-Hulk has managed to rip off the other half of Ultron's chest plate.
There is a flash of light, and She-Hulk's body crashes down several feet to his right; she's unconscious, but still breathing.
Scott hears Ultron approaching him, and knows that there will be no threats this time, no talking; this time, Ultron will simply kill him. His shield is nowhere to be found, probably knocked away by the same punch that sent him flying. He tries to get to his feet, and feels something underneath his right hand. He looks down and sees Thor's hammer, Mjolnir.
He hears Ultron come to a stop behind him, and the hum of the repulsor charging up. He knows that at this distance, a full power blast will pulverize every bone in his body, and liquefy his internal organs; killing him instantly.
Scott grabs the hammers handle with both hands, and spins around to face Ultron. Just as the repulsor fires, the hammer smashes it. Suddenly, three consecutive lightning bolts strike Ultron; the third one causing his body to explode.
When the dust settles, all of Ultron's drones are no longer functioning, and Scott is kneeling on the ground, holding Thor's hammer, with Ultron's head resting on the ground at his knees.
Most of the heroes that were battling Ultron's drones make their way to the center to see what happened, and are all shocked to see Scott, now standing, wielding Mjolnir, while Thor is only now coming too.
Iron-Man lands next to Scott, and reaches out to support him.
"Thanks." Scott says, looking around at the gathered heroes. "What's going on? Why is everyone starring?" He whispers to Iron-Man.
"Because you're holding Thor's hammer." He whispers back. "No one can even lift it, other than Thor."
Thor approaches them, and says, "Nay, Iron-Man, that be false. Mjolnir may be wielded by those deemed worthy by Odin." He looks at Scott closely. "But today be the first day that a mortal hath wielded it." He places his right hand on Scott's left shoulder. "Thou art truly a worthy man, Captain America."
"All I did was pick up your hammer." Scott says, only loud enough for Iron-Man and Thor to hear.
"Cap, even the Hulk can't pick up that hammer; and he's tried." Iron-Man says.
"Hulk." Scott whispers, then looks around to find She-Hulk being helped up by Thing.
He hands Mjolnir to Thor, and starts to walk towards She-Hulk, but stops when Vision lands in front of him. "Captain, the battle is won. What are your orders?"
"Orders? Ah, sure." Scott taps the side of his mask, activating his communicator. "Everyone, this is Captain America. Good job; Ultron has been defeated, and now the cleanup starts. Any injuries are to be taken care of immediately, while Mr. Fantastic and Iron-Man can fight over the remains of Ultron's army. Everybody else, help remove this trash from our city." He says, then quickly adds, "Oh, by the way; has anybody seen my shield?"
"I believe I just saw Spider-Man with it as I was landing." Vision says.
Scott looks around , and spots Spider-Man walking his way with his shield. "Hey, look at me; I'm Captain Spider." Spider-Man says, striking a pose with the shield. "No, wait; that was lame. How about Spider-America? Nope, sounds stupid. Oh, I got it; The American Spider. Yeah, that's the one."
"How did you end up with my shield?" Scott asks him, accepting the shield from Spider-Man.
"It was pretty cool, actually." Spider-Man says, as he starts miming a fight. "So there I was, fighting three of Ultron's drones, and I had just managed to snare them together with my webbing, when my spidey-sense started tingling; so I ducked, thinking that another drone was trying to get the drop on me. Instead, your shield flies right through the space I had just been standing, and decapitates all three drones."
"Really?" Scott asks.
"Yeah. I mean, I already had the situation under control, but a little help once and awhile is always appreciated." Spider-Man replies.
"Help?"
"Yeah; but don't think that this means that you can start following me around; I don't need a sidekick." Spider-Man says, shaking a finger at him.
Scott can't help but laugh. "Oh well, there goes that dream. But if you ever change your mind Spidey, you know where to find me."
"Sure do." Spider-Man says, jumping up in the air, shooting a web, and swinging away.
Scott looks back to see She-Hulk walking away, and runs to catch up to her. "She-Hulk, wait." He calls out as she reaches the edge of the park.
She turns around to see him running, and stops. "Yes Captain?" She says, as he comes to a stop in front of her.
"I wanted to talk to you about before." He says.
She waves her hand dismissively. "You already thanked me, and then you saved my life; so we're even."
"No, I wanted to talk about before that." He says, and she looks at him confused. He looks around to see that no one is within earshot. "I wanted to apologize for running off like that earlier. If I had known who you were, I would have taken you with me."
It takes her a few moments to understand what he means, but when she does, she looks shocked. She looks around, then grabs him and pulls him behind a couple of trees. "Scott?" She asks.
"Yeah. It's me, Jen." He says, peeling back his mask. She still looks shocked, so he says, "I know you must have questions, and I'll answer them all; but not here." He pulls his mask back on.
"My place; fifteen minutes." She says, before jumping in the air, and disappearing.
"Okay." He says to himself.
Several minutes later, Scott finds the bush that he had hidden his duffel bag behind, and changes back. Then he hops the stone wall, and gets back in Tony's car. In no time at all, he's back at the Baxter Building. After a short elevator ride, he walks down the hall until he gets to the door to Jennifer's apartment.
He reaches out to knock, but the door opens and a large green hand grabs him, pulling him into the apartment. The door slams shut, and he turns around to see She-Hulk standing there wearing a tiny pink bathrobe; which he realizes would be normal sized on Jennifer.
"Alright. Who are you really? Where's the real Captain America? How long have you been impersonating him? And do the other Avengers know?" She-Hulk asks, placing her hands on her hips.
Scott starts ticking things off on his fingers. "Ah, okay. I really am Scott Summers. The real Captain America is in a secret bunker, in a coma. I've been impersonating him for about nine months now, and most of the Avengers know the truth...now."
When she doesn't move, or say anything, he adds, "Look, why don't I just start from the beginning? It'll all make sense then."
"Fine." She says, walking into the living room, but always keeping an eye on Scott. "Have a seat."
She sits in the love seat and indicated the couch. Scott sits down and says, "I guess I should start by telling you that I'm an agent of SHIELD."
"...and there you have it." Scott says. "Do you believe me now?"
"Yes; but, wow." She-Hulk says, leaning forward in her seat. "It still raises some questions, though; but I do believe you."
"I know what questions you probably have, and I can only tell you that I'm not allowed to answer them." Scott says, then he leans forward and asks, "So, when were you going to tell me about this?" He waves his hand at her.
She looks down at herself, and asks, "What?"
"About you being She-Hulk."
She laughs. "Oh, come on. You're joking right?" But when she sees that his face is serious, her smile disappears. "You really didn't know I was She-Hulk?"
"Jen, I grew up inside the system; I didn't follow everyday events, I studied data on possible threats." He says. "I knew of She-Hulk, but since you was never considered to be a threat; my knowledge of you was limited."
"But what about when you became Captain America? Didn't you have to study about the Avengers and such?" She asks, sitting back and crossing her legs.
"I did, but the only reference to you in the files, was that you were on a list of heroes that had dealing with the Avengers, but had never been made official members." He says, then adds, "Sorry."
"So you really didn't know?" She asks.
"No, I didn't. I thought you were just sweet little Jennifer Walters, attorney to the super-heroes."
"Does it bother you, me being She-Hulk?" She asks, looking down at her hands.
"Not at all." He says, reaching over and placing a hand on top of hers, causing her to look up at him. "Does it bother you, now that you know my story?"
"No; in fact I feel closer to you now." She says, as they both stand up to face each other. Scott realizes that he now has to look up to look her in the eye. "So, the offer still stands...for coffee." She says smiling at him, cocking an eyebrow suggestively.
"You do realize that I just got knocked around by a very powerful android, right?" Scott asks, smiling back.
"Then I'll be extra gentle with you." She says, running a hand through his hair.
He takes her hand and kisses the palm. "Will you be Jennifer?" He asks.
She seems slightly taken aback by his question. "Do you want me to be Jennifer?"
"Yes."
"Why? You can have all this." She says, stepping back and spreading her arms out wide. "Why would you want little old Jen?"
"Because, while She-Hulk is attractive, Jen is downright beautiful." He says, pulling her close to him.
Slowly, She-Hulk shrinks and losses her green coloration, to eventually be replaced by Jennifer, with a big goofy grin on her face. "Is this really what you want?"
He bends down until his lips are inches from hers, and says, "More than anything." Then he kisses her.
Soon after, her pink bathrobe hits the floor and pools at her feet; followed closely by his shirt and pants.
A/N: That's it for this chapter, hope you enjoyed it. Reviews are always appreciated.
In the next chapter: What is supposed to be a simple trip to find out about Scott's past, turns into a life and death struggle.
Text in *Italics* represent thoughts.