As they neared Sokovia, Ana, her dad, and Vision got off the jet. The rest was going to evacuate the city while the three stalled Ultron. Her dad was going to try to keep him talking as long as he could, Vision was going to purge him from the Internet, and then, Ana was going to get her turn. She perched on the edge of the partially destroyed roof of the church, invisible to everyone, hopefully, even to Ultron.

Her heart started beating faster when she spotted Ultron. Not with fear, but with rage. "Ana, please stick to the plan," FRIDAY reminded.

"Yeah, just don't talk to me unless you have to." She wasn't used to hearing someone else's voice in the suit.

FRIDAY went quiet. At least she was learning fast.

"Come to confess your sins?" Ultron was mocking her dad.

"I don't know, how much time you got?"

"More than you," he said, stepping inside the building.

"Ehm, have you been juicing? A little vibranium cocktail? You're looking… I don't want to say 'puffy'…"

"You're stalling to protect the people."

"That's the mission, did you forget?"

"I've moved beyond your mission. I'm free." With a loud tremor, some kind of machine emerged from the ground.

"JARV—FRIDAY, what's that?"

"There's the rest of the vibranium. Function still unclear." Whatever it was, it went very deep underground. But it wasn't the only problem. Ultron's sentries had started emerging from the water. There could be hundreds of them for all she knew. Yeah, so much for stalling.

Her dad left to fight them, but Ana stayed put. The sentries didn't seem to detect her, and she wanted a word in private with Ultron first. So far, he wasn't as talkative as Vision had promised, but she had to try.

Speaking of, it was Vision's turn to face him. Ultron didn't talk to him much either, but FRIDAY said Vision was doing it. He was burning Ultron out. The cyber battle was brief, but brutal enough to leave Vision defenseless. Ultron easily knocked him out afterwards, though he was now even more pissed.

"You shut me out! Do you think I care? You take away my world, I take away yours."

He reached for the mechanism, but Ana came to shield it just in time. His reaction was priceless when he hit something invisible in the air instead. Ana turned off the stealth mode, and commanded the helmet to collapse back into the suit. She was going to look him in the eye.

"Trust me, you're not the only one who's having a bad day."

"Ana… I'm glad you came."

"Are you, though?"

"I was hoping you would join me."

"In the afterlife? Is that why you stabbed me?"

"That was before you saw the Avengers for what they truly are." He started circling her. He was becoming chatty like Vision had said, so she let him. "You understand now, don't you? I think deep down, you always knew. They're not saviors, or heroes. They're just a hindrance. An obstacle on your path to greatness. You and I can remove them."

He stopped beside Vision's unconscious body, and went down to one knee. "JARVIS is still inside him, buried deep. We can bring him back. Wouldn't you want that? Oh, and Tony… Of course, you wouldn't fight him, not even for JARVIS…" He chuckled. "Well, I don't like Tony. No, I don't like Tony at all. But you can keep him under control, and I'm willing to tolerate him. Call it a gesture of good faith."

"Since we're in a church, I might as well make a confession: I'd take that offer… if I believed a word you said."

He got back on his feet. "You don't believe me?"

"I'm the biggest threat to your existence. You'd never make an alliance with me. That's a risk no AI would take." With that, she charged at him and pinned him against a wall. Gold-titanium alloy was like tinfoil compared to vibranium, but she still ought to give him her best.

"Why? Why am I the number one threat on your list? What makes me more dangerous than my father, JARVIS, or the others?"

"Ah, so that's why you came…"

"I need to know. You owe me an answer."

"It's because you're right."

"About what?"

"About God." Ultron sent her flying off. She tumbled in the air for a couple of times, but FRIDAY steadied the suit.

"Something tells me this has nothing to do with me being an atheist," she said.

Ultron smoothly rose to her level. "Back in the tower, you and I were the only ones who went for the Scepter. Do you think it's a coincidence?"

She recalled something her dad had said on their way here. Something Thor had told everyone, but she hadn't paid much attention while processing JARVIS' second death. "The Infinity Stones? Is that what this is about?"

Ultron didn't say anything. He just charged at her and slammed her against the ground. As he squeezed her neck, she could hear the suit crack under the pressure.

"Lasers!"

FRIDAY activated the laser beams, but it did nothing. "Laser beams can't penetrate vibranium."

She rerouted the power to the chest piece this time, and the blast from the Arc Reactor was enough to repel Ultron. She used the opportunity to flee the area. Unfortunately, she couldn't go invisible again. The bastard had damaged some of the retro-reflective panels.

"Ana?" her dad asked warily. "What the hell was that?"

"Relax, Dad. I'm following your orders, remember?"

"What just happened with Ultron?"

"He tried to kill me, I got away. But my stealth systems are compromised, and I lost too much power."

"What did I say about engaging in a fight with a vibranium robot?"

"I'm sorry. I thought I was keeping my distance. I got distracted. Didn't you hear what he said?"

"We'll discuss that later. For now, you just stick to killing the sentries. They're Ultron, too. Leave the vibranium one to us."

"Understood. Seriously, Dad. Don't worry, about me. I'll be careful."

For the next several minutes, Ana was so focused on killing as many sentries as possible that she didn't even notice something wasn't right until FRIDAY said Sokovia was going for a ride.

"Do you see the beauty of it? The inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor, my swift and terrible sword, and the Earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers, turn my own flesh against me, it means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world would be metal."

With her dad, she backed away from the city to be able to study the scene from a distance and understand what the hell Ultron was doing.

"The vibranium core has a magnetic field. That's what is keeping the rock together."

"If it drops?" her dad asked, but the answer was kind of obvious.

"The impact will kill thousands. Once it gets high enough, global extinction… That building is not cleared. Tenth floor!"

He left to help the trapped civilians. Ana stayed, hovering and staring at the city Ultron was turning into a meteor. She tried to come up with a clever solution, but her brain didn't want to do science right now. "Dad, I don't think I can be much of help right now. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'll think of something. You go back to shredding sentries. Get it out of your system."

She had to kill more than the sentries if she wanted to "get it out of her system," but she didn't say that out loud. She returned to the city, and kept tearing apart as many robots as she could. Yes, they were a part of Ultron, and he was feeling each loss. FRIDAY was keeping a kill-count on the bottom right of the HUD, even though Ana hadn't asked for such a thing. Maybe she was trying to become friends.

In the meantime, she could also hear her dad and FRIDAY discussing the possible solutions. There was no way to bring the city back down slowly, without causing any damage. The only option was blowing it up while it was in the air. With all the people on it. No one was sure what to do, until the Helicarrier showed up.

"Yes! Now this is going to be a good story…"

Ana was surprised Rhodey's suit was connected to the private line she and her dad shared. She wasn't expecting to see him here.

"Yep. If you live to tell it."

"You think I can't hold my own?"

"If we get through this, I'll hold your own."

"You had to make it weird… Wait, is that Ana?"

"Hi, Rhodey," Ana said.

"Tony, why is she here? What were you thinking?"

"It's fine, at least I can keep an eye on her here. Let her blow off some steam."

Ana cut the link off because she didn't have the stomach to hear a rehashing of JARVIS' death. She focused on destroying the sentries. Everything beyond that just seemed too much to handle. The number on the bottom right was now 66 and counting.

At first, Ultron was eager to fight her, but at some point, the sentries changed behavior. They ignored her, and started flocking towards somewhere specific. That was when her dad reinstated the private connection. "Kid, I need you back at the church. We need all hands on deck."

She didn't want to be around the Avengers, but all the remaining sentries were going there anyway, and it would take only one of them to reach the core and kill billions of people. Not a good time to be stubborn. "On my way!"

She had got very far from the church without even realizing. It took her a few minutes to get back there. By the time she did, the whole team had gathered around the core, holding the sentries back. Without a word, she joined them.

When she saw Ulton's main form, she couldn't help herself and went for it once again. It wasn't the smart thing to do, she knew, but it was the form Ultron prized the most, and sooner or later, someone would have to deal with it anyway. She wanted to be that someone.

"You disappoint me," he told Ana, choking her with his hands.

Ana tried to broke free, but to no avail. She kept struggling until Vision tore him away from her. Ultron attacked him this time, but Vision pushed him out of the church with a beam from the Mind Stone. For a one-day-old, he fought quite well. He kept using the beam to penetrate the vibranium, and Ana decided to join. Her dad and Thor joined, too.

But even after going at it for a while, they had been able to melt only a small chunk of it. She stopped when the others did.

"You know, with the benefit of hindsight—" Before he could finish, the Hulk punched him high into the sky. His roar sent a group of sentries nearby running.

"They're trying to leave the city," Thor stated the obvious.

"We can't let them leave, not even one… Rhodey?"

Thor and Vision went to Rhodey's help. Ana was going, too, but her dad stopped her. "Ultron won't give up easy. Some of them will come for the core."

"You want me to protect it?"

"Rhodey's taking out the sentries, I'll be busy destroying the city… There's no one else I trust more than you with the core."

"Can you do it safely?"

"Yeah, we're going to create a heat seal with Thor's help. FRIDAY did the math. It's safe. I'll let you know when it's time to get out."

"Got it."

"Ana?"

"Yeah?"

"You're not planning anything stupid, right? When I tell you to get out, you'll get out?" She could see he was truly afraid. With her track record, no one could blame him.

"Of course."

He kissed her cheek. "Go now."

Ana returned inside the church. "We gotta move out," Rogers was saying. "Even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats, I'll sweep for stragglers. Be right behind you."

"What about the core?" Barton asked.

"I'll protect it," the Maximoff girl said, then added, "It's my job."

"Well, I'm not going to trust a former HYDRA experiment with the fate of the entire world," Ana broke in. "Sorry, not sorry."

"And we're supposed to trust you?" she spat. "You Starks don't know the difference between saving the world and destroying it!"

"Why don't you both stay here?" Nat suggested. "That way you can keep each other in check."

Well, arguing under these circumstances would be a waste of everyone's time, so Ana agreed. Rogers, Barton, and Nat left. Then Ana saw the familiar silver blur, and braced herself. But Pietro Maximoff stopped, and looked at his twin sister.

"Get the people on the boats."

"I'm not going to leave you here."

"I can handle these." To prove her point, she destroyed an incoming sentry. "Come back for me when everyone else is off, not before. You understand?"

"You know, I'm twelve minutes older than you."

She laughed. "Go."

He did, but not before giving Ana a dirty, suspicious glare. Ana rolled her eyes, but then focused on the mission ahead. Her dad had trusted her with this. She couldn't fail him. As he had predicted, not all the sentries had fled the city. Ultron had left some of them behind. The two girls were holding them off easily. It would be a lie if Ana said it hadn't quickly turned into a competition between them.

But suddenly, gunshots in the distance were heard, Maximoff froze, and with a wail, fell down on her knees. As she did, a red energy wave shot from her whole body, obliterating all the sentries around. Ana thought it would kill her, too, but it didn't. After that, the Sokovian was completely silent.

"Your brother?" Ana asked. If she had psychic abilities, she must have felt his death. How else could she know?

"Kill me if you want. I don't want to live."

"Is that why you left me alive?"

She made no reply.

"Ana, it's time. Thor is on his way to the church. You can leave."

"They're going to blow up the city," Ana informed the girl. "You should go. Death, in your case, would be mercy. You deserve to suffer after what you did."

With these words, she took off. She flew to the Helicarrier, to speak with Fury. Yes, she wanted Wanda Maximoff to live with the guilt. It didn't mean she wanted her to live free.

Ana had never seen the Helicarrier before, but she had seen the blueprints. She knew she would find Fury in the command room. The deck was packed with civilians, most of them injured. She made her way among them, into the command room. She got out of her suit, not wanting FRIDAY to hear the upcoming conversation between her and Fury.

Fury was here, with Maria Hill and a bunch of other people, probably ex-SHIELD agents. She walked directly up to him. "We need to talk."

"Can this wait?"

"No."

"Follow me."

They went to a smaller room. He closed the door, and crossed his arms. "Very well. I'm listening."

"We have a problem: The Maximoff girl. I think Barton and Rogers will try to recruit her."

"Good. She's proven her worth today. She's a formidable asset."

"She's HYDRA!"

"What do you want me to do, Ana? To put a bullet in her head?"

"And end her suffering? No! I want you to make sure she spends the rest of her life rotting in a cell! Don't tell me you don't have a place ready for freaks like her!"

"Not going to happen."

This angered her. "Where's my gravitonium, Fury? Where's the book? I'm starting to think the deal we made is based on idle promises. You gotta give me something solid real soon."

"My decision is final. If you have a problem with Maximoff, you're on your own."

Fury was one stubborn son of a bitch. And he liked his collection of enhanced individuals a bit too much. Maybe Ana had made a mistake by trusting him. She stormed out, put her suit back on, went out onto the deck, where she ran into Natasha.

"Hey there," Natasha said.

"Hey… So, is it done?" She looked around, but the flying city was nowhere to be seen. There was only a thick cloud of dust.

"Yeah. It's done."

"Good. I'll take my leave, then. I'm not going back to tower, so I don't know when I'll see you again. But I'm glad you're okay. And I'm sorry being a bitch to you all this time. Goodbye."

"Come here." She extended her arms for a hug.

Well, Ana could use one of those right now. So, she hugged. It felt good. At times like these, she was so desperate for a mother that it was embarrassing. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

Nat released her, and Ana took off. She wasn't sure where to go at first, then the mountain range in the distance caught her attention. Yeah, it was as good a place to be miserable as any.

Speaking of mothers, Ana wondered how Pepper would react to all these. She wouldn't be happy that they had gone behind her back and reactivated the Ultron program, but JARVIS had died… JARVIS had died, and Ana was in too much pain. She needed Pepper.

She was pondering whether she should call her when she saw her dad. He landed, not very far from where her own suit was parked, stepped out, and came to sit down next to her on the edge of the cliff.

"I was a bit harsh on you during the fight. Sorry."

"It's okay. You were scared. You still are… of what I'm going to do from now on."

"Honey, listen. What happened back at the tower—"

"I won't make you choose," she said softly, but firmly. "I won't make you choose a side by starting a war with them. I know you'd choose me, if you had to choose between me and the rest of the world, but that choice would wreck you. I can never hurt you like that. You still believe we need the Avengers for what's coming."

"You don't?" He sounded surprised.

"Ultron wasn't wrong about everything."

"Damn… He got to you, didn't he?"

"Nobody got to me, Dad. Deep down, I always knew something like this would happen. We both did. But that doesn't matter. Like I said, you don't have to worry about me. JARVIS always said people were predictable. He was right. The whole world is going to give you grief over what happened here today. I got no intention to make your life any harder than it's about to become."

"That's not right. You're allowed to be hurt. I keep thinking… Would I have been able to stay so calm if it had been Pepper… No. Definitely not. So, I know I have no right to ask you to think of the greater good, to forgive Cap and Thor—"

"I never said I'd forgive. I said I'd never make you choose. I'm patient. One day, you'll see them for what they really are. You'll understand why they have to be stopped."

"What if I never do?"

She shrugged. "Then I'll have to hope you're right, and I'm wrong. But Dad… There's one thing I'm begging you to do right now."

"I'll do anything, kid. Just name it."

"You can't be a part of that team anymore."

"You want me to quit?"

"Keep funding them if it's going to help you feel better. But we can't live under the same roof with them. You saw how they were last night! They decided JARVIS was expendable and they killed him! Just like that! We couldn't do a damn thing about it! How can I know you're not next? What if the Maximoff bitch decides to kill you in your sleep one night? What if she decides to make us kill each other, just for extra shits and giggles? Because she can, Dad! They all can do whatever the hell they want. We're just two sheep surrounded by a pack of wolves."

He didn't say anything, but Ana could see how her words were helping him realize the gravity of the threat. Especially the possibility of Maximoff making them kill each other. Ana decided to give him a moment to process it.

Adrenaline was wearing off, and Ana's own grave truth was sinking in, too: A life without JARVIS. He was gone. He didn't exist anywhere, in any form. She remembered watching Captain America's shield destroy the computers, the silver blur plugging out the cables, the lightning frying the Cradle. She had watched them all helplessly, because what else could she have done? She didn't blame her dad; he was just trying to stop her from getting killed as well.

"Come here." He pulled her into a hug, and only then, she realized she was crying. "I'll do as you say. I'll retire. You don't have to worry about me."

"Thanks, Dad."

"So, do you want to plan the funeral yourself? Or do you want me to handle that part? Either way, it's fine. No pressure."

Ana looked up, baffled. The thought of a funeral had never occurred to her. She appreciated the suggestion, but it was useless. "Why bother? Who else mourns him? Open your eyes, Dad. Nobody gives a shit. About us, about this family… They didn't even see JARVIS as a person…"

"It doesn't have to be big. Just me, you, Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy… The only ones that matter."

"What exactly is a funeral going to change?"

"It might help you."

"It won't."

"Okay, then. Let me know if you change your mind."

"I don't want to go back to the tower," she whimpered, burying her face into his chest as deep as she could.

"Sure. We can go wherever you want."

"I don't know…"

"How about Switzerland? Italy? Monaco?"

She shook her head. It wasn't a vacation she wanted.

"Malibu?"

"No." She broke into sobs. Malibu was JARVIS' birthplace, and they had had plans to move there after the Avengers left the tower. She didn't want to be reminded of the future she was supposed to have with JARVIS.

"Well, we can't stay here. We're going to freeze to death. Come on. I know just the right place for us."

"Where?"

"Back to where we started. Long Island."

She didn't protest. Long Island seemed like the least hurtful of her options.