"Three minutes. Get what you need." Steve ordered the group. They were headed to Sokovia to face off against Ultron and get Natasha back and they needed to prep.
Tony showed the four enhanced to a room where the gear was stored. Pietro dressed in his usual grey and electric blue muscle shirt and tight pants with running shoes; Wanda was in her black dress, but instead of a red shaw, her twin threw her a red leather jacket to put on; Jack wore a muscle suit similar to Pietro's, but his was black and yellow; and Danielle wore a dark blue and black cat suit with clunky boots.
As they prepped in the gear room, Tony entered with earpieces. "So, you all need codenames so we know what to call you over comms." He explained as he handed them out. "I already know Sparky over here." Tony pat Jack's shoulder as the enhanced young man muttered 'Statix' under his breath. "What do they call the rest of you?" He asked the other three.
"Quicksilver." Pietro chimed in.
Tony looked to Wanda who hesitated for a moment before answering, "Scarlet Witch."
Then the billionaire's eyes landed on the youngest person on the team so far. Her long brown hair covered her face as she sat on a bench in the back tying up her shoes silently. "And you?" Danielle's head popped upon response. "What do they call you?" Danielle stayed silent out of pure fear of speaking up. Especially if it was about her codename. "Mute?"
"They called her Eris back at the HYDRA base." Pietro explained to Tony.
"Why'd they call you that?"
"That..." Jack said as he moved to leave the room. "...is for us to know, and you to never want to know." He turned to the other three and gestured to head out. "C'mon."
As the four enhanced exited the room, they didn't hear the billionaire mutter to himself, "Now I wanna know..."
The four enhanced got onto the Quinjet along with the rest of the team. Most of them tried to keep their distance from Pietro and Wanda, some weren't exactly sure how to react to the Harper siblings either. As Danielle moved to sit down, Steve approached her with something in his hand. "For you." He handed it to her. She took it and opened it up. A dark gold face mask. "I'm sorry, it was the only color I could find." He explained. Danielle looked questioningly at the super soldier. Why had he handed this to her? "You're a minor. I didn't want the public to see you. It would mean more targets on your back, more press, a lot of unwanted attention for a kid under the age of fifteen."
Danielle took the mask and opened it up. As she moved to put it on, Steve could hear a small 'thank you' slip out of her mouth.
The team all gathered together in the Quinjet and sat down for a quick meeting before they landed in Sokovia. "No way we all get through this. If even one tin soldier's left standing, we've lost. It's gonna be blood on the floor." Tony stated.
"I've got no plans tomorrow night." Steve said jokingly as he smirked.
"I get first crack at the big guy." Tony said. "Iron Man's what he's waiting for."
"That's true. He hates you the most." The Vision stated bluntly while entering the jet. Danielle smirked a bit as Jack chuckled.
"Ultron knows we're coming. 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." Steve said. The four enhanced stiffened. That was their home for three years- for their entire life, I the Maximoffs' cases- they didn't want the people to be caught in the crossfires. "So, our priority is getting them out. All they want is to live their lives in peace. That's not gonna happen today. We can do our best to protect them so we can get the job done." Steve continued. "We find out what Ultron's been building. We find Romanoff. We clear the field. Keep the fight between us." Steve ordered and paused for a moment. "Ultron thinks we're monsters- that we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him...it's about whether he's right."
Danielle's eyes traveled to the super soldier for a moment. Not because she thought he was wrong, but because he couldn't have been more right. Ultron was artificial intelligence, sent to protect the world. He believed there was no saving them because of how flawed and imperfect they were. And out of all the billions of people in the world, the Avengers were the worst. But these people had saved lives, what did Danielle do? Take them. If the Avengers were terrible, she was horrid. This was her chance to prove she wasn't the monster HYDRA created her to be. She could save innocent people. She could help save the world.
Wanda and Danielle were in charge of getting all the people out of the city. Wanda used her mind control to get people out and moving while Danielle cleared the streets of cars. Jack shut down all electricity, making it harder for Ultron to move anywhere other than in his suits. And Pietro had begun rounding up the police. They were almost done with the evacuation when Ultron's suits began rising from the ground and attacking.
"Get off the bridge!" Wanda ordered the people her, Danielle, and Clint were clearing out. "Run!" The suits began firing and Wanda used her powers to deflect, but she got knocked down by one of the shots.
"Wanda!" Danielle cried out as she raised her hand and form a fist causing the two suits on the bridge to implode and crumple before them. She then ran over to Wanda and helped her to her feet.
"I'm alright, I'm alright." She assured the girl. "We have get the people out of here." She exclaimed as they quickly used the civilians off the bridge and out of the city. As soon as the group of people were over the bridge, they felt the Earth beneath them begin to shake then rise.
Danielle turned to face Wanda and Clint as they watched the ground rise up from the Earth. This was what Ultron was building. "A meteor..." Danielle breathed as she turned to Wanda. "He's built a meteor."
A bunch of Ultron's suits filled the air and Clint quickly ushered the two girls to hide behind cars as he shot at them. Ultron's voice began being broadcasted through the air waves from the suits. "The beauty of it. The inevitably. 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." He stated. "Purge me from my computers. Turn my own flesh against me." Clint shot an arrow at the suit only to have bother take it's place. "...It means nothing." Danielle clutched tightly to Wanda as she listened to the horrid message. "When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world...will be metal."
'Cap you got incoming!' Tony's voice said over comms.
It was then followed by a groan. 'Incoming already came in.' The super soldier replied. 'Stark you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt em' back.' He said. 'You get killed...walk it off.'
'Can you put that on my grave, please?' Danielle heard Jack quip on the comms.
Danielle only shook her head as she spotted a small boy in the rubble. "Wanda!" She pointed to the boy. Scarlet Witch quickly ran and grabbed him, ushering him to safety. That's when a suit flew right towards her. She quickly deflected it and groaned as she fell to her knees. It wasn't over. A few more suits began crowding around them. "Go, go, go!" Clint quickly ushered the two into a small nearby building as the suits blew up around them.
Wanda and Danielle quickly crawled into a corner away from the window. Danielle had tears welling up in her eyes. "Wanda, we're gonna die..." She whimpered. "And it's all our fault..."
"Hey, hey, hey. Look at me." Clint crawled over to them. "It's your fault. It's everyone's fault-who cares?" He snapped. "Are you up for this? Are you? Look, I just need to know because the city is flying. The city is flying. We're fighting an army of robots...And I have a bow and arrow. None of this makes sense." An explosion suddenly erupted and Wanda gasped. Clint groaned before firing a shot through a hole in the wall before quickly turning back to the two. "But I'm going back out there 'cause its my job. Okay? And I can't do my job and babysit. It doesn't matter what you did or where you were. You go out there you fight. And you fight to kill." He stated. "You stay in here, you're good. I'll send your brothers to come find you two, but if you step out that door...you are an Avenger."
Danielle gulped, but didn't answer. Neither did Wanda. Why was she so scared? Danielle knew she could take on an army of regular men, let alone robot men. So why was she so afraid? She knew the answer to that... Eris. If she fought to much, the monster would get what it wanted. What it always wanted: blood. But if she didn't fight, the world was going to end and Ultron would win. She had to save the world, but at what cost? Becoming the monster Ultron believed her to be? Or becoming the monster only she knew she could be?
"Alright, good chat." Clint said as he stood up and away from the girls. "Phew, yeah, the city is flying." Clint said to himself as he prepped his bow and arrows for another go before ramming through the door and out of the small shack going back out there to do his job while Wanda and Danielle stayed put.
"We have to fix our mess..." Wanda told Danielle. "We helped create this, we must make it right." Wanda the stood to her feet and held her hand out to Danielle.
Danielle looked at it and shook her head. "I can't."
Wanda frowned and knelt in front of the small girl. "Dani, you can't let Eris control your life. You are her. Which means you can control her. You are the strongest person I know. I have faith in you." Danielle stayed silent. Wanda then stood and exited the shack. She went and tore apart a few of Ultron's suits.
Hawkeye approached her and nodded. "Danielle?" He asked, looking towards the shack.
Wanda shook her head. "She's not ready for this."
Clint looked taken aback. "Really? She seems real powerful to me."
"That's not where the problem lies." Wanda explained. "She can't control her powers fully. If something goes wrong...we can't stop her."
Clint looked to the shack and frowned. "She doesn't think she's strong enough to control herself." It wasn't a question. Wanda shook her head. "I'll call her brother."
Wanda opened her mouth to reply, but a blue blur came whizzing by to scoop her up, throwing a small 'keep up, old man!' over his shoulder before dashing off again.
Meanwhile, the twins met up with where Statix was fighting off a bunch of robots along side the police officers. His electric powers sparking through them, causing them to overheat and explode. When Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver arrived, the police chief called out, "Hold your fire!" While the three enhanced did their jobs.
"Took you two long enough." Jack teased Wanda while the two fought side by side.
"We were busy." She retorted.
Jack chuckled as he took down a small group of robots with a single shock. "Where's Dani?"
Wanda frowned and shook her head as she tore the head off a robot with her powers. "She doesn't think she can control Eris. She's hiding in a shack."
"I'll get her." Jack said before being stopped by Pietro.
"No." He protested. "We need you here. Your sister can fend for herself, you know this. She's safe, leave her that way."
Jack nodded before continuing the fight.
Danielle still stayed curled up in the small shack. She knew this was no way to prove herself, but once again, what were her options? Hide away, or destroy it all? But maybe she could fight. Maybe she really was strong enough.
Danielle had been through some tough shit. Kidnapped, orphaned at ten, tortured, turned into a weapon of mass destruction, tested, trained, starved, beaten, abused, poked, prodded, hurt, abandoned, left to die, yet she was still able to smile. She still had a family who cared for her. But that was all going to be taken away.
'Next wave's gonna hit any minute.' Steve's voice rang over comms. 'What do you got, Stark?'
'Well, nothing great.' Tony replied. 'Maybe a way to blow up the city. That'll keep it from impacting the surface if we can get clear.' Danielle's head snapped up at that. They couldn't get cleared, that was the problem.
'I asked for a solution not an escape plan.' Steve retorted.
'Impact radius is getting bigger every second.' Tony said sadly. 'We're gonna have to make a choice.'
'Cap, these people are going nowhere.' Natasha's voice said over comms. 'If Stark finds a way to blow this rock-'
'Not until everyone's safe.' Steve stated.
'Everyone up here versus everyone down there. There's no math there-'
'I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it.'
'I didn't say we should leave.' Natasha said. 'There's worse ways to go. Where else am I gonna get a view like this?'
'Glad you like the view, Romanoff. It's about to get better.' A new voice rang over comms. Danielle wondered what was going on. She decided emerge from the shack to see an enormous helicarrier flying along side the flying city. She breathed out in awe. 'Nice, right? Pulled her out of moth balls with a couple of old friends. She's dusty, but she'll do.'
'Fury, you son of a bitch.' Steve said breathlessly.
'Ooh, you kiss your mother with that mouth?' Danielle laughed at the small exchange. There was hope after all. It was a sign. If the Avengers could take down Ultron and destroy this meteor without any casualties, Danielle could control herself. Not Eris or her powers, herself. She was in control. She always had been. Always will be.
'Thor, I got a plan!' Tony came over the comms in a strained voice.
'We're out of time. They're coming for the core.' Thor spoke.
Danielle's heart dropped. No. She quickly ran to where she knew the church would be. As she approached, she found all the Avengers in the church. "Is that the best you can do?!" Thor shouted at Ultron.
Ultron raised a hand as he flew above the ground some distance away. A large army of robots emerged from behind him and charged forward. "You had to ask." Steve muttered bitterly.
"This is the best I can do." Ultron explained. "This is exactly what I wanted. All of you against all of me. How could you possibly hope to stop me?"
Danielle then felt anger boil within her. This madman wanted to destroy her planet. Destroy her home after she suffered through so much hell to be free and enjoy it. He had already taken many lives, but he would take no more. At least not on her watch. Danielle emerged from the shadows and walked a few yards in front of the church as she raised both her arms. Effortlessly, the front row of robots rose into the air before her raised palms turned into fists. The robots followed the notion and crumpled into balls. Danielle threw her arms back and watched as the robots did the same. She glared up at the metal man who could do nothing but glare back.
"Like the old man said..." Tony replied as he smiled at Danielle's imminent arrival. "Together." The Hulk roared and Danielle retreated into the church to protect the for and fight along side the Avengers.
The robots came in from all sides and each Avenger fought hard. Danielle teleported from place to place around the church, keeping each straggler from getting through the holes in the Avengers' offensive positions. Her brother shocked groups of robots at a time and watched with pleasure as his sister fought with not only control and grace, but with confidence.
As they finished off the robots, Ultron charged at the Vision only to be shot with a ray from the gem, causing him to fly back from the hit outside of the church. Thor and Iron Man stood along side the Vision as Thor shot lightning at Ultron and Tony shot phasers at Ultron. Danielle then came between all three and narrowed her eyes on the robot. Piece by piece, a small bit of metal came falling of his Vibranium body. All four then stopped simultaneously. Ultron was damaged and struggled to stand straight. "You know, with a benefit of hindsight-" Ultron was cut short when Danielle abruptly threw her arm back, sending his form flying off into the distance.
Tony and Thor gave her impressed looks and she blushed under the attention. "Really?" Tony asked. "Now you get all bashful?" Dani blushed even more from that. Suddenly, robots began fleeing rather than running towards the core.
"They're escaping." Jack spoke up.
"We can't let them, not even one. Rhodey." Tony spoke up.
'I'm on it.' Someone new said over comms.
"Dani!" Jack called out. Danielle turned to hug her brother. After releasing her, Jack culler her face and smiled. "I knew you could do it."
Danielle smiled a bit. "It's not over yet." She told him. Jack nodded and the two ran to the edge of the city where the rest of the team was evacuating the people. They were almost finished when the Quinjet fired down on everyone. Danielle and Jack included. Danielle held her hands up and deflected the bullets. When the dust settled, however, Danielle felt a sharp pain within, almost like she had gotten shot, but there were no bullets on her nor Jack. She looked around for the person who had gotten shot, and saw Pietro. "Pietro?" She whimpered at first, but when his body fell to the ground she cried out louder as she ran to him. "Pietro!"
Jack and Danielle slid down beside the speedster. His eyes were still open and lied on the floor in a running stance. "Pietro?" Jack shook his shoulders. His practically brother was dead...
"NO!" Danielle cried out into the air as Pietro's lifeless head lay in her lap. She was content on staying there and crying, but the monster that killed him was still out there, and she had to avenge him... She dried her tears and looked off to the distance where the church was while Clint and Steve carried Pietro's body off and Jack went with them. "Stark?" She whimpered over comms. "I can help stop the meteor."
'How-'
"Danielle, no!" Jack called out from the lifeboat he was on.
"I can unlock my full power... Release Eris..."
'Dani, we can't ask you-' Steve was cut off when the ground suddenly rumbled. Before Dani knew it, the ground beneath her fell. 'Danielle!' Steve called out, but when he looked up from having flung himself onto a lifeboat, she stood in the exact spot he left her, only there was no ground beneath her content standing position.
Danielle looked down at the meteor below her. "Jack..." She started. "This is something I have to do." She looked behind her at the lifeboat where Steve and her brother stared back at her in awe. "I'm strong enough." With that, Danielle turned and walked on air directly above the falling city. She pressed her palms down towards the meteor and with all her power, pulled up. She felt the weight of the city being pulled down at a high speed pull down on her as her powers wrapped themselves on the city. Danielle let out a blood-curdling scream as she used her all strength to pull the city up.
Tony felt the city he was currently under begin to slow down momentum until it came at an all the way stop. 'Harper?' He called over comms.
'She's holding the city up.' Thor exclaimed in awe as he stood in the church. 'This is our chance.'
'Thor, on my mark.' Tony said as he shot power from the suit's rector from below and Thor gained power from the lightning up above. 'Now!' Thor slammed his hammer into the core causing the entire city to vaporize.
Meanwhile, Danielle struggled to keep the falling city at bay. Her power was at its full potential and she felt Eris being released. Danielle's eyes had been slammed shut as she concentrated, but as the city vaporized, she gasped as the weight was released from under her. Her eyes widened and her irises were a glowing gold. Eris was at bay. Danielle was in control. She was Eris.
Danielle gained control of her powers and turned to face the helicarrier a mile away from where she stood in mid-air. She flew herself over to the helicarrier and landed on the landing strip where an extensive crew of paramedics approached her. Before she was rushed into the medical area of the ship, she caught sight of Wanda, Vision, Jack, Steve, Natasha, and Clint. They had all made it.
Danielle breathed a sigh of relief as she collapsed on the med-bay cot she was given in the white-walled room from being drained of all energy she had.
Steve, Jack, and Wanda ran into the room and found her sleeping as the nurses worked around her. "She saved a lot of people." Steve told the other two enhanced.
Jack smiled. "She deserves her rest."
"You all do." Steve told them.
Wanda smiled sadly at him as Jack led her away to get checked out. He knew she was going to need some time, they all would. But for now, they needed to focus on getting better and well rested.
