Thirty Three

Panic was the first thing she felt when she was falling from the Tower. A cold rush of wind blew past her face, whipping her hair in all directions. It was the first time she felt any real panic as cold realization began to sink in. She managed to survive getting stabbed in the stomach by Loki's scepter. She'd survived countless attacks with barely a scar to tell the tale. This was something entirely different, and it made her understand that she wasn't invulnerable to heights.

Chitauri were still flying everywhere, causing destruction and chaos wherever they went. The creature the team had dubbed the 'Leviathan' was crashing into buildings as it moved about. The buildings were too close together, and there wasn't much room for it to maneuver around. Though, Ada doubted the creature or the Chitauri cared much whether they caused destruction. They seemed more interested in destroying lives than caring about the landscape around them.

Her stomach churned with anger and anxiety as the ground suddenly drew closer. It wasn't until looking down that Ada realized the air around her was beginning to shift and change. The Chitauri seemed to sense the change as well. They gave her a wide birth, flying away on their ships while barking orders at one another.

She noticed too late that the ground was approaching faster than she thought possible. Ada knew that if she reached out with her hand, she could touch the ground from her height. She braced herself for the pain that would follow, squeezing her eyes shut for a brief moment. But, the pain never came. Confusion swept through Ada when she realized that her feet were touching the ground, and she had landed safely. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she looked around to see the rest of the team gathered around her.

What the hell was that? she wondered, watching as the debris on the ground seemed to move about in a peculiar pattern. The wind had stopped almost as quickly as it started. Ada narrowed her eyes, having already guessed that she had something to do with the wind moving around. Another elemental power? Just how many do I have?

Her mind was beginning to spin at the thought. She was already overwhelmed as it was, and realized that too much power brought nothing but danger to those around her. The last thing she wanted was to hurt anyone she was close to. Especially with the war looming around them.

She watched as Tony led the Leviathan around the corner and towards the team. It didn't take Ada long to figure out what Tony was planning. If he managed to get it distracted, the rest of the team could work together to take the beast down.

"You think you can hold them off?" Steve asked.

His eyes narrowed in surprise when he spotted Ada approaching. She rose an eyebrow at the look he was giving her. It was clear that he hadn't been expecting to see her return after Tony found her. If he thought she was going to stay behind while everyone else fought in the battle, he was dead wrong.

"Captain," Clint started as he pulled out his bow from his quiver, "It would be my genuine pleasure."

One of the Chitauri that was flying uncomfortably close to the group suddenly felt the force of an arrow being fired into their chest. Or, at least Ada assumed that was their chest. She wasn't entirely sure, given the circumstances. Natasha gave Steve a reassuring nod, telling him they had this handled.

"Glad to see you're back in one piece," Ada remarked after kicking one of the Chitauri on foot in the face. Another was running towards her, holding a gun in hand until she threw a chunk of rock at it, "Nat hit you in the head?"

She couldn't hide the cheeky grin that followed as the archer just glared at her. Despite the banter they often got themselves into, she did care about him, and, vise-versa. She had been worried when Loki took control of him, and was more than grateful he broke whatever spell Loki had over him.

"You could say that," he muttered as they ran over to a bus that had skidded to a halt during the attack.

The mother of a girl she helped rescue continued thanking her relentlessly until she ordered them to take shelter. Once they were gone, Ada started firing at the Chitauri that began surrounding them. Ada glanced at Natasha and Clint, watching in amazement as they took the Chitauri down like they were nothing. She was reminded once again that they had been working together longer than she had been training with them. They knew each other's moves like the back of their heads, and took that to their advantage.

"Just like Budapest all over again!" Natasha called over her shoulder while Clint stood atop of a car, firing arrows at any Chitauri in the air.

"You and I remember Budapest very differently," Clint shouted back, spinning around to fire at another Chitauri.

"What the hell happened in Budapest?" Ada asked when she barely dodged a weapon fired in her direction. Then, she cringed as she already guessed what they had done in Budapest, "On second thought, I don't think I want to know."

"It was never like that!" Clint protested, though, the look on Natasha's face suggested otherwise.

Another Chitauri had hopped off of their ship and ran towards Ada, using her momentary distraction to their advantage. She bit back a gasp of surprise when it wrapped its arm around her neck in a choke-hold. She managed to wrench her arm out of its grasp, and jammed it hard in the rib cage until it released her.

Ada's shoulders sagged in relief when Thor and Steve regrouped to meet with them. Both looked exhausted, but, Thor looked the worst off. Ada couldn't help but look at him sympathetically when she realized that he had been fighting his brother, and that had to be an exhausting weight on his shoulders.

"The powers surrounding the cube is impenetrable," Thor explained when Steve asked what was happening at the Tower.

"Thor is right, we gotta deal with these guys," Tony put in.

Ada swallowed hard as she noticed he was flying closer, leading a group of Chitauri towards them. After everything that had happened, she knew that fighting off the Chitauri and keeping the city relatively safe was the most important task at hand. They needed to take care of the Chitauri as quickly and as efficiently as possible, even if that meant adding to the damage caused by the fight.

"How do we do this?" Natasha asked.

"As a team," Steve said after giving it some thought.

"I have unfinished business with Loki," Thor stated grudgingly.

Yeah, well get in line, Ada thought, narrowing her eyes as she recalled the hell Loki had put her through. She knew he would likely atone for his crimes in Asgard. But, a little Earthly justice might actually prove helpful. Her fists clenched at the thought.

"Yeah, get in line," Clint muttered, voicing her thoughts.

"Save it. Loki's gonna keep this fight focused on us and that's what we need. Without him these things could run wild. We got Stark up top, he's gonna need us—"

Steve was cut off by the sound of an engine running. Ada's eyes widened in disbelief when she realized Banner was approaching them on a small motorcycle. Before anyone could react, Ada rushed over and gave him a much needed hug. To her surprise, and relief, he returned the gesture with one of his own.

"Thank you," he whispered when she gave him a slight nod of encouragement. He paused as she let go and stepped back, ignoring the looks of surprise everyone else gave her, "So… this all seems horrible."

"I've seen worse," Natasha reminded him.

Ada almost winced at that. Though, her tone wasn't accusing like she expected. Natasha had seen first-hand what the Hulk was capable of, and it surprised her that she felt no remorse towards him for what he'd done.

"Sorry," he quickly apologized, flushing in embarrassment.

"No… we could use worse," Ada reassured him, offering a faint smile.

Steve looked at the pair thoughtfully when he realized that they seemed to understand each other better than he first thought. Ada knew what it was like to be seen as something different. Her powers terrified her. Yet, she also knew that they were what defined her. It was pointless to try and keep that part of her life buried in secret.

"Stark, we got him; Banner, just like you said," Steve said through the com.

"Tell him to suit up. I'm bringing the party to you."

Before Steve or anyone else could say anything to that, Ada spotted something large flying around the corner. Tony had started flying towards them, with the Leviathan hot on his trail. Her eyes narrowed as it crashed into a few buildings, causing them to collapse in on themselves or the roofs crash onto the ground below.

"I-I don't see how that's a party," Natasha stuttered for a moment, eyeing the creature in disbelief.

Ada couldn't agree more with Natasha's statement. Pieces of cement and stones began flying around Ada in a defensive position as she realized that this could end miserably. She wasn't planning on taking the creature out on her own; even with her powers, she had her limits.

"Doctor Banner, now would be a good time for you to get angry," Steve told Banner once he regained his composure.

Banner gave a faint nod before walking towards the Leviathan with renewed confidence. She couldn't hide the smile that followed when Ada noticed how much he had changed in just that little time. Despite being afraid of the Hulk and what he would do to the city, he knew what needed to be done to stop the other creature.

"That's my secret, Captain. I'm always angry."

In seconds he had transformed into the Hulk, smashing the Leviathan into pieces. Tony flew in just as the debris began falling around them, threatening to crush anyone in its path. He cut it in half just as it crashed into the buildings surrounding it.

That had only enraged Loki; Ada watched with narrowed eyes when more Chitauri began pouring through the portal after roaring in outrage. The good news was, the streets were mostly cleared of passing civilians. She could only assume they were hiding in buildings or had fled the city before the battle could get any worse.

"Guys," Natasha warned the others before they could feel an ounce of triumph, having followed Ada's gaze.

"Call it, Captain," Tony said after landing beside Ada.

She knew how difficult it was for him to pass on the leadership reigns to someone else. Hearing him ask Captain America of all people for leadership and advice told her that this was beyond anything he had ever been prepared for.

"Alright, listen up. Until we can close that portal up there, we're gonna use containment. Barton, I want you on that roof, eyes on everything. Call out patterns and strays. Stark, you got the perimeter. Anything gets more than three blocks out, you turn it back or your turn it to ash," he ordered.

"Wanna give me a lift?" Clint asked, looking at Tony uneasily.

"Right. Better clench up, Legalos," Tony replied cheekily.

The look that followed was priceless, and Ada had to hold back a fit of laughter when Clint glared at her.

"Now I know where you get it from," he hissed under his breath just as Tony grabbed him and took off.

"In my defense, most of that was self-taught!" she called after him. She didn't miss the looks Steve, Thor and Natasha were giving her. Considering the situation they were in, a little humor actually felt good. "What? It's mostly true."

"Thor, you've gotta try and bottleneck that portal, slow them down. You've got the lightning, light the bastards up," Steve added to the big guy after rolling his eyes at her joke. Thor simply nodded and took off towards the Empire State Building. Finally, Steve looked between Ada and Natasha as the Hulk stood behind them, "You two stay with me here on the ground, keep the fight here and away from the buildings. And, Hulk; smash."

The Hulk only grinned at those orders before jumping from building to building, smashing several Chitauri in the process. Ada used the momentary distraction to knock out a few more Chitauri who had gotten a little too close for comfort. Any Chitauri that were left standing soon learned the hard way that she wasn't an easy target.

"Glad to see you finally see me as a teammate," she started.

She swept another Chitauri off its feet before knocking it out with a piece of cement. Steve looked at her uneasily when he noticed she was putting up a good fight. He hadn't seen her fight before; the only other time he saw her in action was when they were in Stuttgart, and she had been holding back at the time.

"I figured that you're better off following your own orders," he admitted, suddenly feeling sheepish for saying that at all.

He flinched when a piece of cement suddenly hit a Chitauri in the face that had been approaching from behind. Even he didn't have reflexes like that, and he held his shield up instinctively when she glared at him.

"Fury assigned me to this team for a reason!" she snapped, "And whether you like to admit it or not, I'd at least like to play a part in it!"

Steve's brows furrowed in confusion when he realized what she was implying. For a moment, he wasn't sure what to say. While he knew she was fully capable of taking care of herself, there was a small part of him that saw her as nothing more than a defenseless civilian who ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Would you two stop acting like a married couple and get over it?" Natasha snapped, cutting through the awkward silence that followed. She'd already knocked over and killed a few Chitauri that had tried overwhelming her. "Captain, none of this is gonna mean a damn thing if we don't close that portal," she added warily.

"Our biggest guns couldn't touch it," Steve pointed out, relieved to drop the subject as his cheeks turned a faint shade of pink.

Ada rubbed the back of her neck in sheer embarrassment as she wondered if they really had been acting like a married couple.

"Maybe it's not about guns," Ada suggested after thinking over what Steve had said. "The tip of Loki's scepter glows like the Tesseract, and if I'm right about that…"

"It could close the portal," Natasha concluded as realization dawned on her.

One glance at Steve was all it took for him to understand what both were talking about. Despite his earlier confusion, he realized that the Tesseract and Loki's scepter were connected, somehow.

"You wanna get up there, you're gonna need a ride," he warned them.

"I've gotta ride."

Ada crouched down as she said that, and before either of them could protest, a chunk of pavement suddenly lifted from where she had been standing. By the time she was up in the air, Natasha had already stabbed a Chitauri flying one of the ships in the shoulders and managed to maintain control over them and the ship.

It took everything Ada had to concentrate and control the piece of pavement underneath her. She wasn't used to controlling the pavement like this, and it wobbled every now and then as she approached the Tower. She glanced over her shoulder, flinching as a couple of Chitauri had begun flying near and fired at her. Luckily, Clint had seen them as well and stopped them before they could cause more damage. She nodded her thanks to him before reaching the Tower, itself.

She wasn't surprised to see how badly damaged it was. Two letters had been taken off of the word Stark, leaving it as STA instead. Part of the living room had been destroyed with broken glass and windows. And the lower floors were shattered by the Chitauri landing on the building.

Without warning, she rolled into the living room as the Chitauri remaining reached her. When she managed to land without avoiding the shattered glass, a chunk of the pavement she had controlled earlier flew into their faces, knocking them over the balcony in the process. She shook her head in relief at the sight, before heading for the stairs that would lead to the rooftop.

"Guys, I can close it! Can anybody hear me? I can shut the portal down!" Natasha exclaimed.

Thank God, Ada thought, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment when she realized her theory had been right.

"Do it!" Steve snapped.

"No, wait!" Tony suddenly cut in.

"Stark, these things are still coming!"

"I got a nuke coming in, it's gonna blow in less than a minute," Tony explained, and Ada felt a lump form in her throat when she realized what that meant. SHIELD had likely sent the missile, and if they had, that meant they'd given up on the team, "And I know just where to put it."

"Stark, you know that's a one way trip," Steve warned him as the lump in Ada's throat tightened.

"Dad, you can't do that; there has to be another way," she whispered, knowing he would hear her plea loud and clear.

"There is no other way, Ada," Tony pointed out, his own voice wavering for a moment, "I love you, and I'm proud of you."

A knot formed in the pit of her stomach as she reached the landing pad, eyes widening in horror when she spotted the Iron Man suit catching the missile that was aimed for the city. Time suddenly felt as if it slowed down as she watched him fly into the wormhole that was created from the portal.

She swallowed hard as she realized that he wasn't coming back. Even though they couldn't see what was happening on the other side, she knew that the missile would have blown up the moment it reached the other side of the portal. All of the Chitauri had begun dropping the moment the missile exploded, along with the Leviathan creatures.

Just as they started to fall, she heard the loud thud of a body hitting the landing pad behind her. Hatred for Loki and everything he'd done suddenly swept through Ada. She glared daggers at the demigod as he struggled back to his feet, wincing from the impact of being thrown by the Hulk.

"You sorry excuse for an asshole," she snapped, throwing a fireball at him. Loki wasn't given a chance to defend himself as she continued her relentless attacks until exhausting herself. By the time she did, she was gasping for air while glaring at him. "You're nothing more than a monster."

"What does that make you, then?" he sneered after recovering from her attacks. Her hatred for Loki only deepened when she noticed he didn't even look as if he'd been burned, "You are no better than myself, you mewling child."

His voice was dripping with sarcasm, and a malice that sent shivers of unease through Ada. The anger she felt moments ago subsided, as dread quickly swept through her. Ada blinked a few times in disbelief when she realized that he was right about one thing: They weren't entirely different, and, that terrified her. His smirk turned into a triumphant grin, and he was ready to say something else when the familiar roar of the Hulk cut him off.

"Enough! You are all of you beneath me! I am God, you dull creature, and I will not be bullied by—"

He wasn't given the chance to finish his rant when the Hulk suddenly grabbed hold of him, throwing him around the room like a ragdoll. Ada watched, feeling an odd spark of satisfaction when the floor was broken by the force of each hit. Finally, the Hulk had enough with him and smashed him into the floor.

"Puny god," the Hulk grunted before turning to look at her.

Ada couldn't hide the small smile that followed when she caught the look of recognition in his green eyes. Hearing Loki's groan of pain was enough of a reminder that the asshole deserved getting the snot beaten out of him. A small part her was tempted to heal his injuries, but, she wasn't planning on giving in.

"Bruce, do you think you can give me a lift back down and see if dad is okay?" she asked carefully, knowing that even though the Hulk was in control, Banner would still hear her.

The Hulk gave a stiff nod, and growled uneasily when she carefully climbed onto his back. She realized with a start how different it was, and how much of a risk she was taking in trusting the Hulk. Yet, she had trusted him this far, and it never once backfired on her.

Once the Hulk had reached the landing pad, Ada realized with a start that the worst of the battle was over. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she noticed a red and gold blur flying from where the portal had been just seconds ago. The Hulk must have seen it, too, because he leaped from the balcony and reached out for the Iron Man suit, with Ada clinging on for dear life as he used the buildings to slow down his fall.

"Lady Stark, are you unharmed?" Thor asked when the Hulk finally landed while placing the Iron Man suit down, and she slid down from his back.

"I'm feeling a little motion sickness, but, otherwise, I'm okay," she replied, grimacing as she remembered what Loki had said. Her relief was short lived when Thor pried off the mask covering Tony's face. "Dad…"

Her voice dropped to a whisper as she knelt down, ignoring the others around her as she held his face carefully. He'd suffered a few blows, and was bleeding from a couple wounds. But, that didn't mean he'd survived his time in space. The Hulk suddenly yelled in fury, causing the others to jump while Tony's eyes widened in shock.

"What the hell?" he asked while trying to catch his breath, "What just happened? Please tell me nobody kissed me?"

"Steve was tempted to," Ada replied jokingly.

Her shoulders sagged in relief when she realized he was okay. Tony's face twisted in disgust while Steve's face flushed a whole new shade of red, earning a laugh from both Ada and Clint.

"We won," Steve said after recovering from her joke.

"Alright. Hey. Alright. Good job, guys. Let's just not come in tomorrow. Let's just take a day," Tony started, sounding both exhausted and disoriented from his fall, "Have you ever tried shawarma? There's a shawarma joint about two blocks from here. I don't know what it is, but I wanna try it."

"Seriously? We just beat a demigod and an entire army of aliens, and you want shawarma?" Ada asked in disbelief.

"We're not finished, yet," Thor reminded them pointedly.

"Fine. Then, shawarma later," Tony decided.