Hello my friends! I'm sorry if this chapter took too long to be posted, I apologize. I've just been a little busy, plus I had some serious thinking to do regarding this story, but I think I have it all figured out now...Anyway, I think this might be it for Age of Ultron. I don't know what I'll do next until the next Avengers comes out, or anything related to the Avengers. I was thinking about writing little one shots with Pietro and Tyra though! I'm not sure! Anyway, please don't be angry about this chapter and respect my decision. I really don't want any angry reviews as I'm sure you all understand.
It was the possibility of Ultron's plans for destruction that scared me to be honest. I wanted to put on a brave face for my dad, for everyone on the team. However, I couldn't shake off the feeling of the horrible things that would most likely come to light fairly soon. To me, it was incredibly hard to believe that Ultron thought destroying all humanity would somehow save it, that the ones fit for evolution would be the ones to survive.
Ultron honestly believed he was doing the right thing. That in itself is a scary thought. Because that drive to make the world a better place was similar to my father's.
Considering that Ultron was created from the mind stone itself, brought up a lot of questions for me. It made me wonder what Ultron had seen regarding visions, like the ones that Thor had which ended up resulting in Vision's birth. It only proves my theory that Ultron thought he was actually saving us from whatever was out there, even if it meant killing us all. It brought my mind back to the Battle of New York and the fight against the Chitauri, when I went to Asgard when the soul stone is integrated into my being, and when I met my birth mother in another realm.
Who knew what else was out there?
The very thought terrified me, and it made me sympathize with my dad because this was where his anxiety had stemmed from. It was all because of the Battle of New York and the fact that he had seen what I witnessed through the armor's camera feed on the other side of the portal. Bruce could sense my anxiety and stress just from looking at me as we trekked throughout the city towards the castle. Along the way, we kept warning citizens to leave the city. I can't help but check in with the others as I tap on my earpiece.
"Do we have anything on Natasha or Ultron yet?" I asked.
"Not yet. Everything's clear right now. No sign of metal head anywhere." Clint replied. "How close are you and Banner to the castle?"
"Pretty close. We're nearly there." I replied.
I felt myself stumbling slightly when I felt the ground shake slightly. I look at Bruce worriedly when he doesn't stop so I only wonder if I imagined it. I knelt down on the street and put my palm flat on the ground as if trying to search for something.
"Tyra? Why have you stopped?" Bruce asked.
"I think I felt the ground shaking." I muttered nervously.
Bruce pauses when he realizes that I'm being serious and wonders if it had anything to do with Ultron. Then, I feel dazed and lightheaded.
"Tyra, your eyes- -"
FLASH!
"You rang, dragoste?" Pietro smirked.
I nearly jumped out of my skin as I saw Pietro pop up out of nowhere and playfully slapped his arm. Pietro doesn't wince and only looks at me in amusement.
"Dude! Don't fucking scare me like that!" I yelped.
Pietro rolled his eyes before he picked me up bridal style. I find myself blushing as I give him a look of confusion.
"Hey! What are you doing, speedy?" I questioned.
"I'm taking you to the boats." He replied.
"What? No- -"
Before I can finish my sentence, I realized we were suddenly on one of the boats that was about to leave the city and onto the Helicarrier. Pietro puts me down until my feet are firmly planted on the floor. I give him a small and pointed glare before folding my arms.
"No go on. You were saying?" Pietro asks sarcastically.
I couldn't tell what Pietro's angle was on this, but I could tell he was nervous and scared. Not only because he was anxious to leave, but because he wanted to make sure that I was safe from harm.
"If you think for one second that I'm leaving without any of you, you're sorely mistaken." I growled.
"Did you suddenly grow wings in the last few minutes? Are you able to fly?" Pietro gives me a glare.
I give him a gentle shove out of the boats and move to get out as well as more people start making their way in.
"Did you drink any Red Bull?" I retorted. "You know, cause it gives you wings."
Pietro rolled his eyes at my joke and leaned in closer as his expression grows more serious.
"I do not want you to get hurt. You will stay here." Pietro told me.
I saw Natasha pull up in a car with Clint, watching them go their separate ways as Clint joined us on the boat.
"I told you before Pietro, I'm not leaving while all of you are on this thing. I can fly with my jet boots and it's proven to be quite difficult to kill me." I snapped.
"Why do you choose now to be so stubborn?!" Pietro exclaimed.
"I'm being stubborn?! That's the pot calling the kettle black!" I shouted.
"I do not want you to get hurt, Tyra!" Pietro repeated.
"Do not pull that bullshit damsel in distress schtick! I've gotten hurt before and today certainly won't be the last! You better get used to me being around- -"
Pietro let's out a very loud sigh of frustration before taking me by surprise as he grabs my arms and shuts me up with a kiss. Pietro's lips slide against mine passionately, and I could practically feel his emotions pouring into this kiss. I almost forget entirely what I'm mad about as Pietro pulls away. I find myself speechless at his now somber expression.
"I can't lose you or Wanda." He lowers his voice. "That is my point, Tyra. While you may be skilled, I am simply faster. Instead of arguing with me, I could be helping someone and not have to worry about you. I could be back in less than five minutes."
"I'd rather die with my family than be safe. You need to understand that this isn't your choice, Pietro. I choose to be with you all until the end. I don't intend on dying, but I need you to understand what my point is." I concluded. "I care about you guys too much to just leave now."
Pietro blinks away tears, and I swear I've never seen the man get so emotional before as he lets out a husky chuckle. I can feel myself melt against him before I realize it. He places kiss to my forehead and gives me a hug.
"You have proven to be quite difficult, Tyra Stark." Pietro jokes.
"I've been told that." I smile against him.
"I just- -"
Pietro tenses against me and pauses as his eyes search amongst the people on the boats. When Pietro pulls back slightly, I then realize what has him so anxious now. Clint was nowhere to be seen. I scan the boats and find a woman who is in hysterics over her missing son, and when I look over in the distance several yards away, I locate Clint with a little boy. My heart begins to pound in my ears as I hear and see the Quinjet in the distance.
I shove Pietro to the side and move instinctively as he shouts behind me. I start sprinting towards Clint and shout at him from the distance, but he doesn't seem to hear me as he holds the little boy. Then, he froze as he also heard the Quinjet that was missing up until this point coming towards his direction. His eyes finally lock with mine and I activate my jet boots and fly towards him.
Time seems to slow down as we heard the rounds of bullets firing from the Quinjet. Clint gives me a small nod before turning around and holding the boy in his arms as he seems to accept his fate, knowing he wouldn't be getting out of the way in time. As I'm within several feet near Clint, I'm pushed out of the way by an unknown force but see a blue and greyish blur out of the corners of my eyes. As I hit the ground, the sounds of bullets ricocheting finally cease as the Quinjet flies off into the distance.
When the dust cloud clears, my eyes nearly bug out of my head in pure shock. I get up as I see Pietro standing with arms outstretched in front of him, as if he was trying to move something. Then, I see Clint with the child he was in the midst of rescuing and the car they were being shielded by. That's when I realize what Pietro had done. I started running towards them again, hoping and praying that everyone was okay. That's when I see the bullet wounds scattered around his entire body as his uniform becomes stained with red.
No...not him...anyone but him...
"You didn't see that coming?" Pietro breathed out.
"NO!" I screamed.
I catch Pietro just as he falls to the ground, and find his lifeless eyes stare up at me. I can't stop screaming after that.
FLASH!
I look around frantically only to find that Bruce is cradling me in his arms. He looks damn near relieved to see that I've come to.
Shit...he can't die...not like this.
I slowly stood back up with Bruce's help as I currently find myself at a loss of what to do.
I have to warn him.
"Tyra what's going on? What did you see?" Bruce questioned.
I quickly tapped on my earpiece again, making sure that it was still on.
"Pietro." I mumbled softly.
"Hey...what's wrong?" Steve asked. "Are you hurt?"
I cleared my throat and spoke up, trying to keep my emotions in check despite how shaken up I was.
"Where's the older Maximoff?" I asked.
"He's helping with evacuation. What's wrong?" Steve sounded worried.
I close my eyes and take a deep breath before finally speaking up.
"Pietro, if you're listening, don't do anything stupid and I fucking mean it this time." I spat out.
"Tyra, what's wrong? You sound nervous." Steve lowered his voice.
"What isn't wrong?" I sighed. "I just hope that for once, one of my visions doesn't come true."
The line went silent and for once Steve didn't know how to respond. It takes about a minute before I heard Pietro's voice ring out through the comms.
"Tyra- -what is it?" Pietro spoke up.
"I'll tell you when I see you. Just be careful." I warned him.
"Of course, dragoste." He replied.
Bruce and I hear citizens shouts of fear and the two of us grow curious before hearing Ultron's voice echo throughout the city.
"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 my computers, turn my own flesh against me, it means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world will be metal."
Well...I guess Ultron finally made his move huh?
"Sometimes I fucking hate robots." Clint sighed.
"Language!" My dad teased.
"Really? We're doing that still?" I chuckled.
I looked over in the direction of the castle, worried about Natasha. Bruce gives me a nod and then the two of us are running together.
"Tyra and I are finally approaching the castle now. Had to help with some evacuations on the way, but we think Natasha is there." Bruce spoke into his comm.
"Be careful." My dad told us.
As we make our way inside, we're surprised by the lack of noise and our surroundings are filled with pure silence. I remember where the dungeon is and the two of us move to the staircase leading down. I stop Bruce from going further and listen carefully to see if Ultron or Natasha are down there. After several seconds, I let out a sharp and loud piercing whistle as I was taught to by Natasha. It was a sign of communication that would signal whether someone was in trouble or to indicate that help was on the way. Bruce gave me a look of confusion and made an attempt to speak up, but I simply held up my hand as a signal to remain quiet.
Come on, Nattie. Whistle back.
It was faint, but I heard someone whistle back. With that, I ran down to the dungeon with Bruce following me closely behind. I saw Natasha in an old cell, her hands gripping the bars tightly as she saw us.
"Nat, thank god you're alright." I muttered worriedly.
"You guys didn't happen to find a key did you?" Natasha asked.
"Yup." Bruce replies.
Bruce held up his weapon, gesturing for Natasha to step back.
After a few seconds, the cell door was practically melted and destroyed. Natasha got out of the cell, looking anxious and worried. We all became nervous when suddenly, the ground shook violently. I tried to balance myself along the wall, while trying to keep my cool.
"I guess we know what Ultron's up to now!" I yelled. "He's literally making Sokovia a meteor! Now I know how Chicken Little feels when he says the sky is falling!"
"We gotta move!" Bruce said.
Natasha moved closer to Bruce, staring at him with an expression I rarely saw on Natasha's face.
It was a look of admiration and possibly love.
"You're not gonna turn green?" Natasha asked.
"I have a compelling reason not to lose my cool." Bruce replied.
Natasha continued to gaze into Bruce's eyes, smiling faintly as she took another step towards him. I kept glancing at the two and smirked knowingly.
Oooooh, she liiiikes hiiiim.
"I adore you." She mumbled softly.
Natasha grabbed Bruce by his shirt, pulling him in for a passionate kiss.
Oooooh. Natasha you sly girl.
I noticed the way Natasha acted around Bruce, but I never would have guessed that she liked him like this. For some reason though, I felt like they would be cute together.
I can already picture the red-headed baby Hulks. That would be extremely adorable actually...
Natasha then suddenly pushed Bruce away, causing Bruce to lose his balance and fall down a hole that was behind him.
"But I need the other guy." Natasha muttered.
I stared at Natasha in complete shock, wondering the hell had just happened.
"WHAT THE SHIT, NATASHA?! YOU DON'T JUST KISS SOMEONE AND PUSH THEM DOWN A HOLE!"
"Relax, Stark. He'll be fine." Natasha assured me.
I ran over to the huge hole to look down, Natasha only grabbed me by the arm and pulled me back. In seconds, Hulk jumps out and lands in front of us, giving Natasha a look before he gives her a small smile. When the Hulk notices me though, he frowns, probably recalling how he almost killed me.
"Hey. Let's finish the job." I told him.
Hulk cracks a grin and soon enough, we all spring into action as we're ready to take down Ultron. Hulk hunches over, allowing us to hold onto him as we go onto the city as it rises before it's too late.
And now we were up in a city that was currently flying, as the three of us are fighting an army of robots.
Funny how this shit works huh?
"I hope this makes us even!" Natasha told the Hulk.
Hulk only grunted before taking off into the city to rip many of Ultron's robots apart.
"What did you expect?" I laughed.
"Get moving Stark! We've got people to save!" Natasha merely replies.
Natasha ran off and left me standing by myself. I took a few steps forward as I tapped on my earpiece, making sure the connection was still alright. Then, I start up my jet boots and take off flying towards the city.
"You know, I think I'll have an Archer binge marathon when this is over." I mutter to myself.
"Archer? What is that?" Wanda asked.
"Oh damn it, you're gonna wish you hadn't just asked that." Clint grumbles.
"Oh how I cannot wait for our return to the tower." I smirked.
"You have me concerned." Wanda mutters.
It was about five minutes until I had killed my tenth robot. Then after punching my fifteenth robot and ripping him apart with my bare hands, I saw Pietro speeding over to me.
"I guess this is one way you could get rid of some anger. Just destroy a shit ton of robots." I joked.
I noticed that my hands were on fire and immediately put them out with a shake of my hands. I got cut off when Steve's voice interrupted me through the comms. I had been ignoring most of the chat between everyone unless it was serious. The two of us pause as we hear Steve's instructions after my dad had muttered something.
"- -Stark, you worry about bringing the city back to safety. The rest of us have one job. Tear these about." Steve said. "You get hurt, hurt them back. You get killed...walk it off."
I can't help but smirk as I feel a renewed determination course my body.
"Yeah, I'm living proof that I can walk it off." I spoke up.
I turned off my earpiece as I glance back at Pietro, giving him a more serious expression. Pietro turns off his earpiece as well, knowing this was going to be a more private conversation.
"You wanted to tell me something?" Pietro raised an eyebrow.
How do I put this delicately?...
I folded my arms and begin pacing around.
"Uh yeah...listen...I..." I stammered. "I had this vision, and...you died during the battle." I confessed.
Pietro's expression nearly breaks my heart, but he stares at me with wide eyes and swallows a lump in his throat.
"You are...certain of this?" Pietro mumbles softly.
Then, I storm over to him and grab his hand.
"Listen to me, I'm not gonna let you kick the bucket so easily. Not on my watch. I needed to tell you before shit got out of hand. So please, don't do anything stupid or reckless. I need you to keep your eyes and ears open, we need to work as a unit. All of us." I warned him. "You get me?"
Pietro nods nervously and I give his hand a gentle squeeze before giving him a hug to comfort him.
"We'll get through this, Pietro. I promise. You just need to listen to me." I assured him.
I feel Pietro return the hug before he places a kiss to my forehead and pulls away.
"I will try my best to be cautious." Pietro responds.
We both stared at each other for what seemed like minutes, before we both turned back on our earpieces and got back to work. Pietro cracked a small smile as he whisked me away and sped off towards more robots, eager to take them out so we could end the battle more quickly.
I can't wait for this battle to be over.
As the city rose higher into the sky, the battle continued on. Luckily none of us had encountered Ultron yet, but we had managed to find Clint before Pietro sped off again. Wanda had a serious look of determination on her expression despite how nervous she was prior to coming back to Sokovia to face Ultron. I could already tell that Clint had said something to her to change her outlook on things, that he had given her solid advice as he had once done for me. It doesn't take us long before we clear the area of Ultron's robots.
"We're all clear here." Clint spoke into his earpiece.
"We're not clear! We are very not clear!" Steve shouted frantically.
Okay?
"Need any help, Rogers?" I asked cautiously.
"Just hurry up and get over here." Steve nearly panted.
"Alright, coming to you." Clint said.
"Keep up, old man!" Pietro yelled.
Pietro appeared out of nowhere as he grabbed Wanda and sped off with her, also knocking into Clint during the process. I rolled my eyes and chuckled to myself before watching as Clint raised up his bow, looking almost very tempted to get Pietro with an arrow.
"Nobody would know. Nobody...the last I saw of him, Ultron was sitting on him. Yeah, he'll be missed. That quick little bastard- -I miss him already!" He grumbled to himself.
"Okay, old timer. Let's get going." I laughed. "You can kill Sonic later."
"Heh. Sonic..." Clint chuckled. "I like Road Runner better though."
Clint put down his bow as he took a step closer to me. I nod and then wrapped my arms around his waist as I put on my rocket boots, carrying us both over to the rest of the team in under a minute.
After doing what we could involving getting citizens to safety, I ran over to Natasha and Steve as I spotted them. They were trying to take a breather before getting back into the fight.
"Stark, what have you got?" Steve asked my father.
"Oh nothing great. Maybe a way to blow up the city." My dad replied. "That'll keep it from impacting the city, if you guys can get clear."
If it impacted the city, it would be catastrophic, it could mean global destruction.
"I asked for a solution, not an escape plan." Steve said.
"Impact radius gets bigger every second...you'll have to make a choice." My dad mumbled softly.
Shit...this isn't good at all. But wait...if the Helicarrier is on its way...that means Fury is coming to help us. Oh how I love my visions.
"Cap, these people are going nowhere." Natasha spoke up. "If Stark finds a way to blow up this rock- -"
"Not until everyone's safe." Steve snapped.
But when would Fury arrive?
"Everyone up here, versus everyone down there. There's no math here." Natasha said.
"I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it." Steve grew irritated.
"I didn't say we should leave." Natasha mumbled.
Steve looked at Natasha in surprise, before I decided to speak up, trying to ease the tension between the two of them.
"Yeah...there are worst ways to go. I mean, look at this view. You won't be able to find it anywhere else." I joined in the conversation.
Steve smiled at me before he clapped a hand on my shoulder.
"I'm glad you like the view, 'Roxanne'. It's about to get even better." Fury's voice injectected on our comms.
Holy shit snacks.
I watched with amazement as the Helicarrier came into our line of sight.
We might have a chance now!
"Fury, you son of a bitch." Steve grinned.
"You kiss your mother with that mouth?" Fury joked.
I laughed at Fury's comment as I felt someone's arm drape around my shoulder. I relaxed when I noticed that it was Pietro. I smiled back at Pietro and watched as he stared at the Helicarrier in complete awe.
"This is SHIELD?" Pietro asked.
"This is what SHIELD's supposed to be." Steve told him.
"This is not so bad." Pietro smiled.
"Let's get everyone out of here." Steve ordered.
Pietro ruffled my hair and sped off until he was walking next to Steve.
"So...are you two...you know..." Natasha popped up behind me.
I jumped as I stared at Natasha with wide eyes.
"Really, woman? Jeez. There's a better time and place for this."
"Why not now?" Natasha smirked.
"Because we're in the middle of a battle!" I pointed out.
And also because I don't know what to say...
"Come on. Just tell your dear Auntie Nat about your boy troubles." She teased.
"I'm not telling you shit. So what? You gonna make fun of me?" I rolled my eyes.
"I never said that." Natasha smiled.
"Have you met yourself, Nat?" I chuckled. "Look, I don't know what we are, but...I feel something I haven't felt for another guy before. Maybe except Steve...but I don't think that'll happen. I just don't want to think about this until the battle is over, you know, when our lives are not being threatened by a city turning into a meteor." I rambled.
"Okay. I just have one more question." Natasha drones.
Oh brother...
"Is he a good kisser?"
Again, I can't help but roll my eyes at Natasha's inquisitive questions and prying for information. I knew she cared about my wellbeing, but sometimes she could be overbearing.
"I'm not saying anything without a lawyer present, Romanoff." I joked.
Then, the two of us pause in our steps as we can hear my father conversing with someone over the comm link and listen in.
"Thor I have a plan!" My dad yelled.
"You must hurry, they are after the core!" Thor replied.
"Avengers, time to work for a living."
"Did you think we were on vacation or something?" I sighed. "I swear...you guys...I'll be getting grey hairs before I turn thirty..."
"Get your ass moving, sweetums. We've got a job to do." My dad said.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm coming you old badger." I rolled my eyes.
"Old badger? That hurts." He replied.
"I'll get you a bandaid." I quipped.
"I love our little banters." Dad told me.
I can't help but smile at that.
We all made it to the church when we were sure most of the citizens were on board the ships that came from the Helicarrier. I stared at the device that was implanted into the ground of the church, noticing how tense my dad was as he stood next to it.
I'm just going to assume that this is the device that's making Sokovia become a huge ass meteor.
I saw Pietro speed over to Wanda, inspecting her quickly for any wounds.
"You good?" Pietro asked.
"Yeah." Wanda nodded tiredly.
"Romanoff. You and Banner better not be playing 'hide the zucchini'." My dad spoke up.
"Relax, shellman. Not all of us can play." Natasha simply replied.
"You say that now..." I trailed off.
"I don't need your sass right now, Tye-Dye." Natasha quipped.
We all see a huge vehicle being crashed into multiple robots surrounding the church and I immediately went on guard. After realizing it was Natasha, I managed to relax but just barely.
"What's the drill?" She asked.
Iron Man pointed to the device implanted into the heart of the church.
"That is the drill. If Ultron gets his hands on the core, we all lose." Dad explained.
I stood in a defensive position when I saw Ultron fly down into our view. I can't help but smirk at him as I wave teasingly.
"Hey Robo-Stepbrother!" I taunted.
Ultron gave me a pointed look but can't retort as Thor steps forward with a tight grip on Mjolnir.
"IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?!" Thor yelled loudly.
Ultron then held up his hand, signaling a huge crowd of his army to run forward at us.
"Why did you have to say it?" I groaned. "God damn it Thor, why?!"
Steve sighed as he glanced back at Thor with an equally annoyed expression.
"You had to ask." Steve droned.
Ultron looked pleased knowing that we were completely out-numbered.
"This is the best that I can do. This is exactly what I wanted. All of you against all of me. How can you possibly hope to stop me?" Ultron spoke up.
I glanced at my dad and smiled at him knowingly as I put a hand on his armor covered shoulder.
"Like the old man said...together." My dad answered.
I'm incredibly tempted to sing High School Musical's, 'We're All In This Together'.
Hulk let out a huge roar as he slammed his fists together, looking absolutely thrilled to take down and rip apart these robots. I could understand his enthusiasm and also got ready as I allowed Extremis to take over and heat up most of my body. If I could play this out right, I would be able to melt and easily rip apart a lot of Ultron's robots like wrapping paper.
And just like that, they all charged at us.
Robots came from all directions in the church. The Avengers fought hard and annihilated most of Ultron's army like this was something we did on every Tuesday. What made this fight even more epic was that it was like something out of a movie, the way we fought so well together. It was a spectacle, an amazing thing to witness. In all honesty, the fight seemed to be even better with Wanda, Pietro and Vision by our side. From left to right, from even above us, Ultron's army came crashing in one at a time to even all at once. It was sporadic, chaotic, and messy. The piles of scrap metal from Ultron's army only continued to increase as we fought valiantly around the core.
I find Ultron amongst the chaos and lunge at him before throwing him out of the church and going to attack him. As soon as I gather the energy, I summon fire like energy from my hands with Extremis until I aim it directly at Ultron. He can barely hold back my attack, and it gets increasingly difficult once my father joins in with his repulsor beam, Vision comes shooting energy from the Mind Stone, and Thor summons lightning from Mjolnir. Finally, we stop firing at Ultron after a minute or so, knowing how weakened he now was.
"Why did we stop firing?" I asked.
Ultron shakily stood up on his feet, wobbling over to us.
"You know, when the benefit of the- -"
Ultron got cut off as Hulk stormed over and immediately punched Ultron, sending him maybe all the way across the city.
"I guess that's one way to shut him up." I smirked at Hulk and held out my fist. "Oh come on, big guy. Don't leave me hanging."
Hulk rolled his eyes before gently bumping his fist with mine.
Awww. He actually did it!
"You know, I feel like I can handle anything you've got. If you ever wanna spar sometime...I'm your girl." I joked.
Hulk huffed as he gave me a look that pretty much spelled out, "Yeah, right. After the last time I almost killed you?" Hulk turned to stare at the rest of the robots lingering about near the church. As soon as he spotted them, they all started running. I normally would have laughed at something like that, but I knew we couldn't let any of Ultron's robots leave.
Every trace of Ultron had to be destroyed.
"They're trying to leave the city." Thor grew worried.
"We can't let them. Not even one." I said.
"Rhodey." My dad said.
"On it." Rhodey spoke up. "Oh no. I didn't say you could leave. War Machine coming at you!"
I came back into the church, noticing the big amount of metal scattered on the ground near the core.
"We gotta move out. The air's getting thin here. You guys get to the boats. We'll sweep for strikers. I'll be right behind you." Steve got our attention.
"What about the core?" Clint asked.
Wanda perked up and stood next to the core protectively.
"I'll protect it. It's my job." She nodded at Clint.
Clint also nodded back at her as he ran off with Natasha and Steve. I walked out of the church to follow them, but slow down as I noticed Pietro and Wanda conversing. It was when I remembered that any moment now, that Pietro would sacrifice his life for Clint and that child.
I can't let that happen. I'll just have to beat Clint and save that kid myself.
"Get the people on the boats." Wanda told Pietro.
"I'm not going to leave you." Pietro shook his head.
"I can handle this." Wanda said.
A robot came running for the core, and Wanda effortlessly destroyed it before it could even get near. Pietro only shrugged when he knew his sister was strong enough but he'd never admit to her being stronger than him.
"Come back for me when everyone else is off, not before." Wanda ordered.
Pietro started walking out of the church, ignoring what Wanda had said.
"Did you hear what I just said?" Wanda snapped.
"You know, I'm twelve minutes older than you." Pietro teased.
"Go." Wanda chuckled lightly.
I turned on my rocket boots and flew off to the boats, trying to remember where my vision took place.
I've gotta hurry.
As soon as I reached towards the ground, I glanced down at the woman in hysterics, crying for her child, wondering if anyone had seen him. I felt someone tap my shoulder and inwardly winced when I saw Pietro standing behind me.
"Get on the boat. It's too dangerous to be right here." Pietro warned me.
God damn it...well he ain't the fastest man alive for nothing...
"I just have to do something first- -"
"Did you suddenly grow wings in the last few minutes? Are you able to fly?" Pietro gives me a glare.
I give him a gentle shove out of the boats and move to get out as well as more people start making their way in.
"Did you drink any Red Bull?" I retorted. "You know, cause it gives you wings."
Pietro rolled his eyes at my joke and leaned in closer as his expression grows more serious.
"I do not want you to get hurt. You will stay here." Pietro told me.
I saw Natasha pull up in a car with Clint, watching them go their separate ways as Clint joined us on the boat.
"I told you before Pietro, I'm not leaving while all of you are on this thing. I can fly with my jet boots and it's proven to be quite difficult to kill me." I snapped.
"Why do you choose now to be so stubborn?!" Pietro exclaimed.
"I'm being stubborn?! That's the pot calling the kettle black!" I shouted.
"I do not want you to get hurt, Tyra!" Pietro repeated.
Immediately, I pause when I feel that sudden familiarity of dejavu. I shove Pietro to the side and try looking for Clint and the boy he was rescuing, but Pietro's in front of me once again.
"What are you doing?! Did you not hear what I just said or do you not care?!" Pietro grows upset.
I can hear his accent grow thicker the more upset he becomes and finally, I grab him by the shirt and pull him in for a kiss to shut him the fuck up. I quickly pull away after five seconds and look for Clint frantically.
"You stay here. No arguments!" I ordered him.
It takes me a minute or so before I locate Clint in the distance with the little boy. I take off towards him with my jet boots on, and that's when I hear the Quinjet. I look over in the distance several yards away, I locate Clint with a little boy. My heart begins to pound in my ears as I hear and see the Quinjet in the distance getting even closer. As the Quinjet approaches, Clint froze as he also heard the Quinjet that was missing up until this point coming towards his direction. His eyes lock with mine when he sees me approaching towards him at high speed.
Time seems to slow down as we heard the rounds of bullets firing from the Quinjet. Clint gives me a small nod before turning around and holding the boy in his arms as he seems to accept his fate, knowing he wouldn't be getting out of the way in time. I manage to shove Clint out of the way just in the knick of time as I hear the Quinjet firing. I close my eyes as I accept my fate, hoping Extremis would be able to heal these wounds in no time. As I await for the pain, I find myself being shoved by an unknown force, but see a blue and greyish blur out of the corners of my eyes. As I hit the ground, the sounds of bullets ricocheting finally cease as the Quinjet flies off into the distance.
When the dust cloud clears, my eyes nearly bug out of my head in pure shock. In front of me, I see Pietro with his arms outstretched towards me, a very faint smile crossing his face as bullet hole wounds are scattered across his body. I get up as I continue to stare at Pietro with wide disbelieving eyes.
"You didn't see that coming?" Pietro rasps.
"NO!" I scream.
I catch Pietro just in time, and feel nothing but pure agony as I let out a pained scream. When I see his lifeless eyes stare up at me, I continue to scream and sob as I hold his corpse in my arms. Out of all of the people that I've tried to save, this one hurt the most.
I was so close to saving him...so close.
When someone touches my shoulder, I whirl around and glare at them through my blurred vision. Then, I realize that it's Steve. He looks just as upset about Pietro as I am, but when he gives me a shake of the head, I know that he wants me to let go of Pietro's body. I fight against Steve as he pulls me away, and immediately, he turns me in towards him until I'm crying against him. By the time Clint returns without the boy he'd rescued, he immediately picks up Pietro and follows us back to the last ship as Steve leads me there.
It might have been half an hour before Sokovia fell, but I had no doubt that Thor and my father had it handled and saved the world.
But it didn't feel like we won at all, not to me at least.
Despite everyone's warnings, and considering the state I was now in, I stayed with Pietro in the infirmary, holding his cold hand for what seemed like forever. I half expected him to get up and smirk at me before saying his stupid catch phrase, "You didn't see that coming?"
But nothing happened...
I kept wondering what I did wrong, what had even possessed Pietro to push me out of the way. I warned him not to do anything stupid, I told him that I would take care of it.
Why did he do it? Why didn't he listen to me?
I felt a hand touch my shoulder gently and turned around to see Wanda. Her eyes were red and full of tears as she reached over and hugged me tightly. I burst into tears as well and held her like my life depended on it.
"I'm so sorry." I kept repeating. "I...I tried- -"
Wanda pulled back slightly to smile at me.
"I know you did. Pietro just can't listen can he?" Her voice cracked.
I shook my head and shut my eyes as I hugged Wanda again. Wanda went over and stared at her brother before gently running her fingers through his hair, murmuring words in Sokovian in Pietro's ear. I stood back and quietly exited the room, knowing that Wanda would like to say her goodbyes. I felt a huge amount of guilt as I glanced back at Wanda and Pietro, knowing that there was no way I could ever make things right with them.
I'm so sorry I failed you both.
It had been a week or so since the Battle of Sokovia, and things weren't going easy for me, or for everyone else. Wanda was trying to get over the loss of her twin brother, and Natasha was trying to keep it together herself because of Bruce. When word got out that Bruce had gone into hiding, I felt even worse than I did before.
It was like everyone I cared about was just leaving me.
Where there was bad, there was also good. I mean, currently, we were all at the new Avengers headquarters, which was also the new SHIELD base of operations. SHIELD was slowly being rebuilt, without any type of corruption this time might I add. I tried keeping myself busy by training SHIELD recruits and also training with them, so I could stay in shape. However, at the end of the day when I was alone with my thoughts, I kept thinking back to when Pietro risked his life in order to save mine. I always kept wondering what had made him do it, though it was questionable if I would survive those shots to my body, even with my healing factor. All I could do at the time was hope that I would survive. There was also the good news of Clint having his new baby son. What made me tear up about the newest Barton was the fact that baby Nathaniel's middle name was Pietro.
Nathaniel Pietro Barton. It had a nice ring to it.
After making my way to the Avengers/SHIELD headquarters, I got out a bottle of scotch from one of the lounges that had a full stocked bar before going to leave towards my new room, not wanting to face anyone at the moment. I had good days and bad days, and today was one of those bad days where I just desired to crawl up into bed and wished that I didn't exist.
"Hey."
I felt Steve gently grasp my hand, using his other hand to take away the scotch.
"Listen, I know it's a little late for this, but I'm sorry...about Pietro. Wanda told me everything. She...uh...showed me your memories." Steve mumbled.
Oh yeah...she can go into people's minds...forgot for a second there.
"You don't have to be sorry about Pietro. I'm the one that should be sorry. I let Wanda down..." I mumbled softly.
"No you didn't. If anyone's to blame for what happened to Pietro, it would be Ultron. And Ultron got what he deserved." Steve told me.
"I know you're trying to make me feel better, but there's nothing that can help right now. Maybe except for that bottle of scotch you're holding hostage from me."
"Come on...let's go for a walk. I'm not leaving you by yourself. Not right now." Steve said.
Steve wrapped an arm around me as he led me outside.
It might have been minutes later that I found my dad conversing with Thor, and judging by Thor's appearance with his armor on, I could tell he was about to go back to Asgard.
"You go on. Tell the big guy I said goodbye, would yah?"
"Nope. You can tell him yourself."
Steve wrapped his arm around my waist, forcing me to walk with him.
"Steve!" I yelped. "You can't make me socialize with people! I- -"
"Listen, I know that you'll need time to mourn over Pietro, both you and Wanda. But right now, I don't want you to be alone." Steve grew serious.
"You don't have to pretend to care, Rogers. I'm a big tough girl. I can handle myself." I rolled my eyes.
"I'm not insinuating that you can't handle anything by yourself, but I'm worried about you. We all are. I know how much you wanted to save him from HYDRA, even before you met the guy. You kept trying to track the twins down, even when it wasn't your responsibility. You always see the best in everyone." Steve smiled at me. "You always try to take care of us...now let me do something for you. I want to take care of you for a change. Now come on and say goodbye to Thor, yeah? I know he wants to see you before he goes."
I folded my arms and stared up at Steve, before cracking a small smile.
He's such a softie at times.
"Fine. But don't expect any miracles. I'm not going to suddenly switch moods and be happy."
"As long as you just give me a chance to help you feel better. That's all I need." Steve smiled.
Why did Steve want to help me? He's always the voice of reason...
We both walked over to Thor and Tony, both of them smiling as they saw me for the first time in a while.
"How are you doing, kiddo?" Dad asked carefully.
"...I've had better days." I shrugged.
"Tyra. It is wonderful to see you." Thor kissed my hand.
"You don't have to lie to me, Odinson." I roll my eyes.
"I'm not the god that is known for lying, Tyra." Thor smiles charmingly. "You look better today." He added.
"I do, huh?" I lightly scoff. "What a charmer you are." My lips quirk up.
"You should smile more, Tyra. You look beautiful." Thor compliments.
At this, I can't help but feel my face burn with embarrassment as I'm unable to fight the growing smile on my face. For the first time in a while, I actually feel like myself again.
"You sir, need to stop before my face is stuck like this. I hate smiling." I tease.
Thor laughs at this.
Maybe being surrounded by friends would be more beneficial anyway...
"Now Thor, if you ever decided that Jane wasn't such good company anymore, you know where to find me." I joked.
"HEY! Silence yourself! There will be no flirting on these grounds!" My dad interfered.
Thor slung an arm around my shoulder, playing along as leans in towards me.
"I will most certainly contact you should I ever need a lady friend." Thor winked at me.
I bit my bottom lip and could no longer contain my laughter. After playfully punching Thor's arm, I grabbed my bottle of scotch from Steve, and gave Thor a kiss on the cheek.
"I'll see you later, big guy. Call me up when you decide to visit, huh?" I gave him a warm smile.
I began walking away back to the base, my smile fading away quickly as I kept thinking at how quickly most of my friends were leaving.
"That was the first time she's smiled since Sokovia." Thor commented.
"Yeah...it was." Tony lowered his voice. "When Maximoff died...it was just like Coulson all over again."
"She will need the both of you more than ever to recover from this loss. I've seen what it does to her." Thor mumbled softly. "When Loki died...she was lost in her mind, body, and soul. It pained me to see her that way."
It takes everything within Tony Stark not to snap in regards to the subject of Loki Odinson. He bites his tongue and shakes his head.
"She hates therapists..." Tony merely said.
"It's because she can't talk to them...she doesn't know them on a personal level." Steve pointed out. "She'll only talk to people she can trust."
Tony almost finds himself impressed with Steve Rogers that he's able to so easily deduce that about Tyra. Maybe Steve really did care about Tyra's wellbeing. Thor nodded in agreement as he claps a hand on Steve's shoulder.
"Both of you need to be there for Lady Stark. She is in a dark place right now." Thor warned the two Avengers.
"All I've ever seen her do is talk to Wanda or drink herself into a stupor for the past few days. But she's trying to move on. It's all she can do." Steve said.
"If she's anything like me, she probably hasn't slept well either." Tony sighed.
"No." Thor shakes his head.
Steve and Tony glance at Thor in confusion and worry when they see the grim look on his face.
"You don't understand, not fully." Thor mutters. "Tyra possesses a dark side, and when the Aether was integrated into her very being, it only intensified that darkness."
Tony tenses at Thor's grim tone.
"The Aether?" Steve raised an eyebrow.
"The Soul Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones. You must keep in mind that she was also exposed to the Tesseract as well, which also contained yet another Infinity Stone." Thor continued.
"Thor...what are you saying?" Tony barely utters.
Tony, for the first time in a while, openly displays his fear and worry in front of his comrades.
"Perhaps it is a number of things that have contributed to Tyra's mental decline, but one thing is for certain...I see her slipping away. Like Loki." Thor concludes.
I put the bottle down on the table in front of me.
Damn...I can't even drink.
I glanced over at my cell phone, scrolling through the contacts I had saved along the years. My thumb hovered over Bruce's name, knowing that he still had his private cell phone that my father and I had gifted to him ourselves. I hesitantly pushed the call button, putting my phone up to my ear, hoping that he would pick up.
"Hello, this is Dr. Bruce Banner- -"
"Bruce!" I felt tears spring in my eyes. "Please! You have to tell me where you are! I...I need you...Natasha needs you...I- -"
"I can't come to the phone right now, so please leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as possible."
My smile faded away instantly as I heard the voice mail.
BEEP!
"...why did you leave us Bruce? I..." I felt tears stream down my face. "Everyone I care about is leaving me...I never thought that you would be one of them. What you did to Natasha...it really hurt her. Whatever your reasoning is...just...come back. We need you, Bruce. You're apart of our family- -"
I stopped talking, knowing that my message probably wouldn't do any good.
Bruce probably threw his private cell phone away by now...
I ended the call, putting my phone down immediately and just stare at it for the longest time.
"Tyra. Are you alright?"
I didn't look up, and quickly wiped away my tears with the back of my hand.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I chuckled dryly.
My phone vibrated, my screen also lighting up as I got a message.
I needed to figure out some things. Don't blame yourself for anything, Tyra. I'll miss you too. Don't bother trying to track me down, my cell phone will be disposed of by the time you read this and I will be long gone.
Goodbye for now Tyra,
Bruce
I stared at my phone in disbelief, unsure if what I saw was real or not. I kept staring at the text message, reading it over repeatedly until I felt a hand on my shoulder. I jumped and immediately shut my phone off.
"Tyra!"
I glanced at Wanda, trying to will away the tears that were blurring my vision.
"What is wrong?" Wanda's glare softened.
"Nothing." I turned away. "I'll be fine."
"Is it about...Pietro?" Wanda hesitantly asked.
I frowned at mention of the older Maximoff, but made eye contact with Wanda again.
"No." I answered.
"Then what is it?" Wanda stared at me suspiciously.
"Just let it go- -"
Wanda's eyes widened by a small fraction as she then gasped.
"You've been in contact with Dr. Banner?" She lowered her voice. "Are your friends not searching for him? We must let them know."
"No. If Bruce wants to be left alone then I'm respecting his decision. We're not telling them." I snapped.
Wanda looked surprised at my outburst, but reluctantly nodded.
"I am sorry."
I sighed as I tried to relax, my anger vanishing immediately.
"I'm sorry too. Just...don't go into my mind like that again. It's invasive and rude." I mumbled softly.
Wanda gave me a small smile and grabbed my hand.
"I will try my best. Sometimes, if someone's thoughts are very loud...I can't help but overhear them." She explained.
"Ms. Stark and Ms. Maximoff, Captain Rogers wishes for the both of you to, and I repeat, 'Get moving before I come up there.' He sounds very eager for you both to meet with him." FRIDAY informed us.
"Right. Let's get going then." I squeezed Wanda's hand.
The room was filled with familiar faces and I only grew tense. I didn't exactly want to be here at the moment, but after much arguing- -I mean convincing from Steve, I reluctantly decided to join them. I glanced over at Uncle Rhodey, watching him shift in his War Machine armor. Rhodey kept the face piece to the helmet off, as he conversed with Falcon AKA Sam Wilson. Wanda played with her hair as she smiled at Vision and talked with the android. From what I heard, Vision had actually saved Wanda's life.
I'm not going to be surprised if those two end up together.
I looked down at my feet, noticing that I was pretty much the only person who wasn't socializing.
"Ms. Stark...how are you feeling today?"
I blushed as I snapped out of my thoughts and looked up to see Vision and Wanda standing in front of me.
"Oh hey. Yeah...I'm fine." I smiled faintly. "And call me Tyra."
"Yes, of course, Tyra. I apologize for my error. But...you do not seem fine. You are constantly sad and anxious. You also seem to be irritable, and have excessively been crying. From what your father tells me, you also have feelings of guilt, worthlessness, helplessness, hopelessness, you sleep too little, have a decreased appetite...based off those symptoms, you might have depression amongst other disorders like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder." Vision ranted.
I looked at Vision in surprise, wondering how he was able to list off those things without wasting a breath. Everyone stared at me, curious as to how I would react. Rhodey grew defensive, ready to step in and separate us if he needed to, but I only sat there and gave him a blanks stare devoid of emotion.
Damn...that's a mouthful...
"Is that all?" I chuckled dryly.
"Vision. You cannot just say things like that." Wanda practically hissed.
Vision looked sheepish and immediately pulls me in for a hug. I feel uncomfortable almost instantly and yearn to be isolated in my room.
"I am sorry. I didn't mean to offend you, Tyra." He apologized.
"Please let me go." I groaned.
Vision reluctantly released me and just as I was about to leave, in comes Steve and Natasha.
God damn it.
Steve takes one long look at all of us, and then smiles before shouting.
"Avengers! A- -
THE END!
For now! I finally fucking finished it! I mean, there's still plenty more to go, but I've been busy with school, so it'll be a while before I actually post anything! Please don't hate me, I just...I've thought long and hard about whether or not I should kill Pietro. This was not easy for me. And who knows? I have a strong feeling that Pietro's going to come back! Plus from what I've heard, since Joss Whedon won't be directing the 3rd Avengers (don't take my word for it, this is just something I heard on Tumblr.) That means, whoever will be in charge of directing the next Avengers will probably end up changing everything. And since Marvel might see Pietro as profit due to his popularity now...ANYWAY, getting back on track, I didn't want to kill Pietro but I felt like I had to because I always follow the Marvel movies. I still believe Pietro will be brought back, but for now, I will write one-shots with Tyra and Pietro as if the ending to Avengers AOU never happened. As I stated at the beginning of this SUPER LONG CHAPTER I WROTE FOR YOU ALL, please respect my decision, I really don't want any hate from any of you. I love you guys, but don't be assholes PRETTY PLEASE. Anyway, please review, don't hassle me about updating (because I don't know what I'll be doing since there aren't any Marvel movies involving the Avengers as of right now. I don't really think Ant Man counts because there was just a small brief mention of the Avengers.) please be polite, and that is all! I love you guys, and I'll make some more stories soon that involve Pietro and Tyra!
Goodbye for now,
bellas2silly