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Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel. I own Addison Carter.

RATED M

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Salvage Yard, African Coast, May 2015

"We try to talk first, then if they don't want to surrender we fight. Banner, you stay back until we call a Code Green. Cryptic, you guide us, then Widow, you and Hawkeye will watch our back. Thor, Iron Man and I will confront them."

We all nodded and the quinjet landed among trees. I turned one both of my earpieces and followed the group.

"The Maximoffs are there, many people. They're wondering if they should shoot them, so they're not the only threats. Klaue's there too."

We divided in two teams. Clint, Natasha and I went different ways. While the first team was talking with the enemy, I was down a level, between missiles, hidden. Of course, all Hell broke loose fast and there were gunshots everywhere. From my spot, I was stopping bullets and knocking out people I could see.

The girl, Wanda, was not anywhere close to me for now. However, her brother crashed near me, Thor's hammer in his hand. I touched the titanium sample on my sleeve and restrained him. Pietro looked at him with glassy eyes.

"Keep him down," Steve told me before running off.

"Got it!" I raised my free hand to my ear. "Guys, Wanda has bad intentions regarding your minds, be careful not to be manipulated."

"Got it," Clint replied, an arrow flying above my head, blowing a bot up.

"Are you an Enhanced?" Pietro asked me with his thick accent.

"No."

"Your powers are similar."

"Maybe, but I was born with them, I didn't volunteer for human experimentation." He frowned.

"We have genetic oddities as well." I looked at him with a frown.

"You want to kill us?" He just glared at me. "Let's say you succeed, what's next for you?" His glare intensified. "Because trust me, if we lose here, you'll have another thing coming Pietro."

"Do you think we won't take them down too?" I opened my mouth and looked down at the red energy wrapped around me. I looked behind me, seeing Wanda moving her fingers.

She threw me to the other side of the room, hitting the ceiling. I whined in pain but managed to make a platform to keep me from falling.

"Does anyone copy?" I heard Clint through my earpiece.

"Yeah, I painfully copy," I replied with a groan, scanning the place. "Tony's with Ultron, Natasha, Steve and Thor are...here but their minds are not."

"Yeah, mind control."

"I think Natasha's near you, she getting lower and lower. I'll take care of Steve and Thor."

"Alright."

The closest to me was Thor. I flew to him, who was kneeling on the floor.

"Thor," I called him gently, stepping down my platform. I shook him a little with telekinesis, not wanting him to turn on me by accident. He blinked confusedly and set his blue eyes on me. I smiled. "Hey big guy, back to Earth?" He licked his dry lips and nodded. "Okay, you need to go to the quinjet."

"Can anyone help me with the Hulk?"

"The whole team is down Tony, Addison and I are helping the others."

"Fine, I'm calling Veronica."

"Thor, you're with me?"

"...yeah...quinjet..." I nodded.

"I'm going to check on Steve, we'll meet there." I found Steve quickly, laying down on the floor, his eyes closed. I knelt next to him and gave him a weak slap. "Rogers, wake up. It's not the time to take a nap." He made a small groan. "Stevie, Steve, Captain Annoying, Capcicle..." He started to blink.

His eyes found mine.

"Addison?" he whispered weakly. I grabbed his hand and pulled him on his feet.

"Let's go back to the quinjet." I slipped my arm around his waist, his arm on my shoulder, and led him outside. Thor was leaning against the wall of the place. I hit him weakly in the back and made him move.

They were not fast and Steve literally slouched in his seat. Thor sat down in front of him, silent. Clint quickly arrived with Natasha, who was disturbed as well.

"I'll check if the twins are still around," I told him. He nodded and showed the team.

"I'll take care of them." I left the jet and adjusted my earpiece, walking further from the vehicle.

I spotted them. I grabbed my katana handles, making 'titanium' blades and moving carefully. It was two against one and they both were enhanced.

A blur of blue and silver. I threw my katana. He grabbed it, no surprise here, and tried to strike me. I used my other blade and he stopped just before he had his throat sliced. The handle in his hand had no blade.

"What the hell is this?"

"You're not worthy enough."

Reading what Wanda had in mind, I blocked Pietro and sent him in the energy blast that was aimed at me. The poor guy rolled on the ground in pain.

"Pietro!" My handles were back in my hands.

"I am not a meat shield!" I shrugged.

"You happened to be here." Wanda had a ball of red energy in her hands. She threw another blast at me and I blocked it with my blade.

It wavered, a little, but it wavered.

As I was focused on that, I didn't feel Pietro getting up and running toward me, making me fall painfully on the ground. Before I could get up, Wanda was moving her hands around my head. I felt her magic or whatever it was trying to get inside my head but it was ejected quickly. I locked eyes with her, who was stunned.

"That's what you did to the others, you gave them what, visions? Relieve past traumas?"

"It usually works..." she said, stepping away as I got up.

"You're new to that." I looked at her brother. "You both are. I doubt HYDRA had any good way to train you and your powers, so you're self-taught but now you think you're all powerful." I smirked at the girl. "Telepathy covers a lot of ground Maximoff, one of them being protecting your mind from people like you."

"Wanda, let's go," Pietro told his sister, wary eyes staring at me.

"He..." They were gone. "Shit."

"I calmed Banner down." Tony said suddenly, sounding exhausted.

"The twins ran away," I said after a second, not sensing them anywhere. "I'm going back to the quinjet."

"Once Addison is here, we're picking you up."

I sat down next to Clint at the front of the quinjet. Tony handled the public while I gave Doc some clothes. Clint was quick to take off once Tony was on board.

It was dead silent. Clint pointed at his head at some point and I nodded.

"Did she try to get you?" I nodded.

"I'm good, telepathy also means you can have a mental shield and I have one," I whispered. He nodded.

When I was alone as a teenager, it was what I had done. I cut off the connection Professor Xavier had with me by using mental protections around my mind. I was pretty sure he did not try too hard but I did. It was only since London, in particular since the end of last year, that I realized I could do that. The Aether must have upgraded it.

"The news is loving you guys," Hill said through the radio. "Nobody else is. There's been no official call for Banner's arrest, but it's in the air."

"The Stark Relief Foundation?"

"Already on the scene." It was nighttime outside, but we were flying in the clouds. I couldn't see any star. "How's the team?"

"Everyone..." Tony stared, hesitating.

"The twins got us good," I said with a hoarse voice. I cleared my throat.

"For now I'd stay in stealth mode until it calms down."

"So run and hide?" Maria looked tensed on the screen.

"Until we find Ultron, I don't have a lot else to offer."

"Neither do we," Tony said with finality with a look at the rest of the group. Hill disappeared from the screen.

I settled for looking outside for the rest of the fly, hiding my surprise when after Clint said we were going to a safe place to Tony, I heard him saying 'Home' in his mind.

We were at a farm. I looked around, walking behind Doc, knowing there was no hostile presences here. Everybody was wondering where we were.

Of course, it was a surprise to see Clint with his pregnant wife and two kids. Thor walked on some kids toys and put it under a piece of furniture. I followed him when he started to leave, Steve behind him.

"Thor!" Steve called him.

"I saw something. I need to check it out."

"Thor, the twins' powers come from the Scepter. It made my blade waver." Thor locked eyes with me. "You told me what it was in London, maybe there's one in the Scepter." He looked troubled.

"I need to go." He took off.

"What were you talking about?"

"Something I hope to be wrong about."

An Infinity Stone had...changed something in me. If those two's powers had been triggered by another Infinity Stone...

"I need to..." I pointed at the wooden area and walked toward it without finishing my sentence.

I slumped down against a tree and breathed out heavily. The team was a big, big mess.

I could hear Steve's thoughts away from the house as well, on the opposite side of the farm. I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed James' number.

"Are you done yet?" he grumpily asked me. "Wade wants 'company' on his excursions."

"Deadpool?" I sighed. "I...I'm not done yet, things are real messy at the moment."

"Are you hurt?" I smiled softly at the concern in his voice.

"Funny enough, I'm one of the few who got out of this place relatively fine. I must have a big bruise on my back but nothing more." I pushed my hair back, realizing I needed a shower. "It's just...teammates had their minds played with."

"Steve?" he inquired immediately.

"He's one of them." The line was silent for a few seconds. "There's...a girl, I don't know, maybe between seventeen and twenty at best, who has mental abilities. She...must have played with their minds." A growl.

"And your mind?"

"I'm a telepath, my mind is harder to harm than one of a regular folk."

"That's not fair," he joked weakly.

We were comfortable enough to joke about the other's past. Nothing too serious, but just teasing here and there. It was enough to remind us it was in the past.

Bless James for seeing I actually needed that as well. I was helping him, sure, but I was also selfishly using him to redeem myself and he knew that. He let me have that.

"Why are you calling me then?"

"I missed the sound of your voice luv," I replied jokingly, the posh accent I grew up with at home escaping my lips naturally. "More seriously, with how things are at the moment...I needed some normality I guess."

"And you think a brainwashed assassin as a roommate is normal?"

"Meh, it's my normality. I got used to you nagging me about not cleaning enough after myself."

"It's not that complicated to wash the dishes right after you used them," he mumbled.

"At ease soldier! What's next, I don't make my bed the right way?" He stayed silent. "You're a fucking jerk."

"So I've been told Carter." I rolled my eyes, a smile playing on my lips.

I looked toward the house, where Tony was, looking around. I waved at him and walked toward me.

"I think I have to go. Just...don't let Wade involve you in weird shits."

"I know what I'd get myself into." I raised a brow when he took a sharp breath.

"Hey, you okay back home?"

"Yeah, it's quiet without your music."

"Haha, hilarious. I have to go soon, Tony's coming my way with a look that says he'll try to make me spill the beans about you."

"Just...come home safely Addie." I smiled, knowing a blush was creeping its way up to my cheeks.

"Will do. See you, don't do anything stupid." I hung up.

"Who was that? Roommate?" I blinked at Tony and looked at my phone.

"Yeah, just told her it would take longer. So what's up?"

"We're staying here tonight to get some rest. Bruce and Natasha are taking a shower." I raised a brow. "Not together Addie, although...there's something, isn't there?"

"Don't ask me, mind reading is prohibited." He almost rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, Miss Barton picked clothes for all of us and it seems like Natasha has some clothes here as well." I nodded and got up. "What were doing here by the way?"

"It's just...a lot happened in a very short amount of time. It's a lot to take in." He pursed his lips.

"You're not wrong about that." We walked back to the house. "So, can I meet that roommate of yours?"

"We talked about this already."

"But I didn't know you got along so well!"

"Shut up will you?"

I ran a hand on my face with a yawn. I had fallen asleep while playing with Lila, Clint and Laura's youngest. Jet lag was hitting me hard. I had taken a shower, changed my clothes for a comfy outfit and now I had a stiff back because I was leaning against the kid's bed.

I scanned anyone's thoughts around. Natasha and Doc were resting, Clint was with his kids, Steve and Tony were outside with Clint's wife and…

Huh?

Fury?

I stopped listening to them and raised my hands. Black matter swirled between them, almost like black sand. Wanda's powers were prettier than mine but…

Hell, I hope I was wrong.

"Addison?" The black matter vanished and I raised my head to Laura, at the entrance of the room. "Lila told me you fell asleep."

"Yeah, jet lag, I didn't sleep on the jet." I got up, wincing at the pain in my back.

"Achy back?" I nodded. "Do you want some pain killers?"

"Thanks but I'm good, I'm careful with what I take." I gestured at my head. "Telepathy can be tricky to control, I don't want to hear everybody's thoughts without being able to stop them."

"And what about a heat pack then?" I smiled faintly.

"I'd appreciate that." She smiled back at me and I felt weird. It was a motherly smile.

It just...Pepper smiled like that to me too, but it was...rarer.

"Dinner is soon as well, you can rest in the couch."

I did. I was laying on my stomach, in the couch, a heat pack on each side of my neck. I fell back asleep for a while and woke up to a little girl, in her dad's arms, braiding my hair. They both had malicious grins.

"She woke up Daddy!"

"Yeah, you have work to do to reach Aunty Nat's level." He put her down and she ran off to 'Aunty Nat'. It was disturbing to see. "Fury wants to talk to all of us."

"Screw him."

"I may have lost an eye but I am not deaf yet Carter." I raised my head from the cushion, a fake smile plastered on my face.

"Here I thought you died. I mourned you."

"I'm sure you did." I got up with a sigh and sat down in front of Natasha.

I stayed silent while they talked about Ultron and his plans, how someone was working against him.

"No offense Boss, but I thought you'd have more for us," Natasha droned.

"I do. I have you." I raised a brow at Fury. "Even the uncooperative one."

"Hey!" I protested, offended. Clint snickered for a second, but the others ignored me.

"Back in the days I had my eyes everywhere. Eyes, ears, everywhere else," Fury told us. "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 between him and his mission. And whether or not he admits it, his mission is global destruction." I lowered my eyes. "All this, laid in a grave. So stand. Outwit the platinum bastard."

"Steve doesn't like that kind of language."

"You know what Romanoff," Steve replied, annoyed. She smirked.

"So what does he want?"

"He stole a ton shit of vibranium," I said. Steve rolled his eyes, Natasha's smirk growing a little more. "Natasha mentioned the possibility of him using it to make a new body as well. He's been building a lot of bodies already, so he may try to use vibranium to..."

"Evolve," Doc cut me off. I wasn't even mad at that. He stared at the drawing of a butterfly before looking at us. "Ultron is going to use the vibranium, and the Scepter as well probably, to evolve."

"How?" Steve asked him. Doc looked around.

"Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?" I paled.

"The cradle is in Seoul," Clint reminded us. "It's where we have to go." Steve looked at Tony.

"You're taking care of the Nexus?" My godfather nodded.

"I don't think I should..." Doc started. Steve pursed his lips.

"Wanda is too dangerous right now. Barton, Romanoff, Carter and I will head to Seoul for Doctor Cho. Get dressed."

Before leaving, I had to explain that even if there were no blades, my swords worked perfectly fine and that no, it was not just for show.

Brats.

"Natasha and Clint, you'll stay in the quinjet to catch anything and anyone who leaves the building. Addison, you and I we're going to confront Ultron." I gave him a thumbs-up.

We were dropped on the terrace of a building, Cho's facility maybe a kilometer away from us.

"Two minutes, stay close," Steve said through his earpiece. I transported us to the facility and widened my eyes.

"Shit, people are hurt, including Cho." We landed smoothly on the ground and Steve sprinted away while I scanned the area around us. Nothing worth mentioning.

"Ultron's got the cradle, we have to get it to the Tower. You guys see anything?"

"A truck from the lab not far from you."

"Addison, locate the twins, sorry but try to handle them on your own."

"Geez, I'm not a career counselor." I still did, hopping on a platform. I adjusted the earpiece, trying to find Wanda. Pietro was too fast and gave me a headache.

There. In a dark alley, near the market and away from where Steve was currently...struggling against that robot, she was thinking that they made a mistake.

Well, they were not wrong here. At least they realized it quickly. I headed their way and jumped down once I could see them. Unsurprisingly, they both turned around to look at me. I raised my hands.

"You're no longer with Ultron, we have no reason to fight, especially if you want to stop him before he destroys this whole planet." I could see a TV broadcasting what was currently happening behind them.

"We didn't know," Pietro said in their defense, stepping in front of his sister.

"I hope so, total annihilation means you two die as well." I stepped closer, but slowly. "So now what? Do you regret helping him?" They shared a look. "Because with your powers, you could help us. At the moment, we could use all the help we can get." I turned my head, suddenly hearing Steve calling me for back-up. "People may die today." I hopped on a concrete platform before taking off.

I spotted Steve and sped up to keep up with the train. I touched the titanium on my sleeve and managed to make a black matter bubble around his shot. Ultron looked at me when I felt the explosion in the bubble.

"Ha, another one." I raised a brow and tried to tie him to the floor of the train but he moved out of the way. It was too fast for me to try something else.

It was not too fast for Pietro who knocked him down, Wanda blocking the way.

"Please, don't do this."

"What choice do we have?" Wanda replied.

I barely avoided the blast that made me lose my platform. I tried to get back on another one but Ultron grabbed me by the neck.

"You keep ruining my plans, don't you?" Ultron asked me angrily as he was flying fast in the air, my hand on his metal wrist as I was choking.

If he moved his arm just a little lower, I would crash in a car and die. I tried to create something in his joints, grabbed a sword but I couldn't because all I wanted was to breath. I couldn't focus on anything but getting air in my lungs.

I was squirming, trying to make him let go of me. Cold, metal fingers clenched around my throat tighter.

"Why don't you just give up?" he wondered with genuine wonder. "I'm fighting the good fight and you keep getting in my way." I saw the quinjet but it was blurry.

I started to struggle less and less. I just...I couldn't…

"I forgot, you humans need to breath, don't you?" He didn't ease up the pressure around my throat.

I could feel my eyes rolling back in my head.

Ultron, seeing something more interesting, decided to throw me in the river. I free fell, taking the deepest breath I had ever taken in my life. My back still touched the water harshly and I saw the surface getting further and further away. A voice was yelling in my ear.

I needed to breath.

Something...something started to pull me to the surface and soon I was at the surface, on my back. There was...someone calling my name but…

I coughed, the iron taste of blood in my mouth. The clouds...the clouds were pretty, even if the view was getting darker and darker.

I passed out, that same voice still calling me.

Thank you all for reading! Don't hesitate to leave a review! Thanks to dhnysports88 for the review!

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