Chapter 28

New York City, USA

Spring 2015

It really was a great party from what Nadine could judge. The Tower was filled with music and the sounds of dozens people laughing and chatting and having an all-around good time. Everywhere she looked, Nadine could spot the Avengers, each visibly enjoying themselves, smiles on their faces, body language loose and relaxed. It was a chance to unwind, and they were taking full advantage of it with their friends.

Naturally, Nadine took in all of it, senses alert and mind as observant and assessing as always. From where she stood on one of the mid-level decks of the Tower's common area, she could easily see Natasha helping herself behind the bar as Bruce approached, looking somewhat uncomfortable and almost a little lost. Thor was regaling a group of older men—veterans judging by their caps—with one of his adventures. Hawkeye was chatting with Dr. Cho while Tony wandered in his role of consummate host, flitting around the Tower with a broad grin and snappy quips aplenty, though she couldn't help but note he was looking distracted and faintly concerned. Steve she noticed chatting with a friend of his—Sam, if Nadine remembered correctly—before they parted with what looked like farewell, leaving Steve to make his way back down from the far side of the level she was on to the level where the couches and the main bar—where Natasha and Bruce were still talking somewhat intently—were located.

And as the Avengers mingled and enjoyed themselves, she stood at the railing, mercifully alone.

Nadine fought back the urge to fluff or fiddle with her hair…again. She wasn't used to the loose curls. Wasn't used to anything but neat buns or functional ponytails, really.

More than that, it felt inappropriate. Her stomach ached at the thought; Nina was still out there, somewhere. Nadine should be out looking for her. Not attending an Avenger's celebration party. They might have reason to celebrate—Strucker's Alien Sceptre had been retrieved after a long search, Strucker was locked up, HYDRA had been dealt a crushing blow; they were good reasons—but Nadine didn't.

Nadine's mission had failed. She had no reason to celebrate.

She didn't deserve to celebrate.

She flicked back a stray curl, feeling unaccountably frustrated at the pale lock for brushing against her cheekbone. No, that was wrong. She wasn't unaccountably frustrated. She knew exactly what was bothering her. She was taking out her helpless frustration on the poor curl. It felt silly to be all made up, her hair neatly done and wearing the sleek forest-green dress Natasha had picked out for her. It felt silly to be attending a party when she had no reason to celebrate and very much wasn't in the mood for enjoying.

But Natasha had insisted, a peculiar, even eager look on her face as she had fussed over Nadine's appearance for the party. Truthfully, Nadine wasn't sure she'd ever been to a party quite like this. Not one where she wasn't working in some capacity; a couple Galas to support a former student or two; some business-oriented events for the Studio; one less-than-memorable event when she'd been after a mark. But none that were purely intended for, well, fun.

Holding back a sigh, she straightened from where she'd been leaning her forearms on the railing, looking past the cheerful party-goers out to the city-scape beyond. It was beautiful, but she couldn't shake the feeling of anxious helplessness as she looked out at the myriad colourful lights speckling the New York vista.

She should be doing something. Something useful!

Something that would help her find her little girl.

"You don't want to be here at all, do you?" Nadine turned to see Steve holding out a dark bottle to her, a surprising look of understanding on his face. She smiled wanly as she reached out to accept the drink.

"Not really," she admitted sedately. "It feels—it feels frivolous; ill-timed." A faint smile quirked the Captain's lips even as Nadine hastily added: "for me, at least." She gestured around the room, indicating him and the other Avengers, "for all of you, it's perfectly warranted. It's well deserved. But for me—"

"The job's not done, so it's not the time for celebrating," he finished for her. She looked up at him with thinly veiled surprise. She hadn't quite expected him to understand, but really, she realized she should have. He was a soldier and a leader through and through. He wouldn't be one to celebrate before the job was done. His gaze grew serious, though the compassion lingered.

"We are going to help you get her back, Nadine. You can trust me on that. Me, Nat, Barton, even Stark; you know he's been running his own searches, right? Trying some different angles with J.A.R.V.I.S.? We don't intend to forget about Nina. For your help with Strucker, we owe you that much. Once J.A.R.V.I.S. has done his thing and Thor's taken the Sceptre back to Asgard, we'll do everything in our power to get her back." Nadine could only manage to nod in gratitude, her throat abruptly too tight to manage words even as her eyes began to prickle. She hadn't realized just how afraid she'd been at the idea of continuing on alone. That the very people she'd gone to for help wouldn't be interested in helping anymore.

She hadn't realized how quickly she'd grown used to the idea of not being alone.

"Thank you, Steve," she finally managed to say, looking up at the Captain. He smiled lightly, his ocean-hued eyes sincere. Nadine couldn't help but smile back, feeling unaccountably reassured by the expression in those eyes. Nodding, he laid a hand briefly in her shoulder.

"You're welcome." Her shoulder felt oddly cool as he withdrew his hand, as though the touch had warmed her far more than it should have. With a final grin, he stepped back, obviously intending to return to the slowly winding down party. But before he took his leave, he paused, turning back to her for a moment.

"You know, you don't have to stay if you don't want to. We all know how concerned you are about your daughter. None of us would blame you if you ducked away to keep working." Another mild wave of surprise went through Nadine at the comment, her pulse unaccountably picking up at the concern he was showing. Was she really so unused to another person caring? She sent him a grateful smile. She glanced across the way to where Natasha was chatting with Steve's friend, the dark-skinned man passing along what appeared to be a friendly goodbye to the redhead. Nadine sighed lightly as she turned back to the Captain.

"Thanks. I really do appreciate the thought. Natasha won't let me disappear, though. She's got herself convinced I need the break; she's already dragged me back out twice," she admitted with a trace of petulance; she was a grown woman, for heaven's sake, so she should be able to decide for herself if she wanted to stay at a party or not. A look of amused understanding settled on Steve's handsome features—she nearly shook her head at the observation…of all the times to think such things—as he glanced over toward the redheaded assassin himself.

"Well, I can't say that surprises me," he said with a tone of fond exasperation, turning back to Nadine with a grin, "she's certainly not afraid to do what she thinks is best for those she cares about." Nadine hummed in agreement.

"No she's not. She's been that way for as long as I've know her." Steve chuckled before growing thoughtful.

"You could always grab one of the tablets and keep working out here. The party's breaking up, but I suspect we're going to be hanging around for a bit still. You can keep tabs on your searches while still keeping Nat happy." Nadine let out a small burst of laughter, raising an amused eyebrow at the Captain.

"I doubt she'll let me get away with even that, but it's worth a try."

In that, Nadine was certainly proven right. Not long after the last of the guests filed out, the Avengers and their remaining couple of colleagues were gathered on the cream-coloured couches in the heart of the Tower's common area. Nadine had slipped away to retrieve a tablet to keep working, even settling herself near the celebrating team in an attempt to keep Natasha from complaining that she wasn't letting her mind reset.

Within moments of noticing Nadine's attention wasn't wholly on the conversations, the redhead had confiscated the tablet and dragged her blonde sister into the group, virtually shoving her into the last empty spot on the couch next to Steve before retaking her own seat between a dozing Dr. Cho and Dr. Banner. Across the way, Hawkeye was stifling an amused grin even as he shot her a sympathetic look while Tony let out a veritable snicker only to be elbowed by Colonel Rhodes. It was a snicker that died quickly when the billionaire caught a glimpse of the cool glare Nadine sent him. That led to a round of chuckles all its own, even bringing a grin to Nadine's lips despite her mind being elsewhere.

As the conversations resumed, drinks being passed around and laughter periodically breaking out, Nadine was surprised at a flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye. An amused smirk curled her lips as, with a set of conspiratorial grins, Thor was slipping Nadine's tablet from where Natasha had stashed it and passing it discreetly to Steve. With a nod and a similar look of understanding to the one he'd given her earlier in the evening, Steve was then slyly passing the tablet on to Nadine as he simultaneously held out Thor's flask to her, both of which Nadine gratefully accepted.

Raising the tiny silver flask in thanks to the two men, Nadine took the barest sip before handing it back, shivering a little at the cool smoothness of the liquor as it scorched its way into her belly. The Asgardian might have ceded that Nadine's Enhanced physiology could likely handle the spirit, but she wasn't about to take any chances; she knew she had a much higher tolerance for alcohol than average humans thanks to the Treatments, but she also knew she was certainly far below the league Steve and Thor were in.

It was a gesture Natasha watched with satisfaction before returning her attention back to her conversation with Banner. With matching glances of triumph, Nadine nodded her thanks again to the Captain and the Asgardian before shifting a little further down the couch to resume her work while the others enjoyed themselves.

But despite the fact that she was working, Nadine was soon finding that she was enjoying herself as well. Really, as far as her work to track down Nina and the Maximoffs was going, she could do little more than monitor and periodically adjust her parameters. It left her mind to wander to the carefree socializing going on around her, and it was hard not to get at least a little caught up in the atmosphere.

Watching the team, seeing how comfortable and familiar they were with each other? Even with the interlopers—Dr. Cho, Stark's two guests, Nadine and even Maria Hill, on some level—there was an easy camaraderie between the Avengers that, to Nadine, at least, felt almost…familial. It was cheering in a way Nadine hadn't expected. Besides, it was fascinating to watch the dynamics of the group.

Especially when Barton got the ball rolling for the rest of the Avengers to try lifting Thor's Hammer. There was no denying that the attempts were outrageously entertaining…nor could she deny the visual appeal…

…there was just something about watching Rogers putting all those magnificent muscles to use, even if the attempt was unsuccessful…

Neither could she help her chuckle as the Captain shot her a questioning look as he retook his seat next to her after Natasha had demurred an opportunity to try her hand at lifting the Hammer.

"Oh I don't know," the blonde assassin quipped wryly, understanding his silent inquiry, "you all might not like what I do with it." Not that she believed for a second that she'd be able to lift it. A round of answering chuckles followed her response and subsequent wave off.

"In all deference to the man who wouldn't be king," Stark broke in, earning a fond eye-roll from everyone in spirit if not in actuality, "but it's rigged."

"You bet your ass," Barton agreed emphatically as he slapped Stark's arm lightly in commiseration while Colonel Rhodes stoically nodded his own agreement.

Hill—a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Nadine's memory supplied—not missing a beat, piped up, pointing to Barton with an almost comically serious expression as she looked to Rogers: "Steve, he said a bad language word." Nadine had to stifle a laugh as the Captain groaned, slowly shaking his head before shooting Stark an accusatory glance.

"Did you tell everyone about that?"

"I did warn you," Nadine couldn't help but offer with a teasing grin before taking a smug sip from the amber bottle in her hand, earning herself an exasperated look from the Captain. She pointedly ignored the warmth fluttering in her chest at the faint sparkle of amusement in his eyes as he glanced to her.

She was not attracted or infatuated with the Captain, she forcibly reminded herself.

…Okay, maybe a little attracted…but really, it was hard not to be. The man was not at all hard to look at and she was neither blind nor dead. Despite her best efforts, she wasn't immune to a virtually perfect physique or a handsome face or a charming smile or that honest, ocean-blue gaze—she nearly shook her head in effort to dispel the unwelcome thoughts. They were nothing more than a distraction. Besides, there was far more to Rogers than just his appearance, she scolded herself; he was kind, compassionate, intelligent without being showy about it, unfailingly loyal to his team and his friends, confident, morally assured—Nadine forced her attention back to Stark and his Hammer theories.

She really needed to stop…

…and the best way to do that was to get her mind back on the task of finding her daughter. So with more effort than she was willing to admit, she forced her mind to switch tracks back to her searches. Only for a frown to come to her face as she glanced down to the tablet where it sat unobtrusively next to her thigh.

"Yes…well that's uh, that's a very, very interesting theory," Thor was saying as Nadine picked up the tablet with the hand not holding her drink, an inexplicable feeling of unease seeping into her belly at the error message flickering on the off-coloured screen. "I have a simpler one: you're all not worthy." Nadine glanced up even as Thor was lifting Mjolnir with a showy little toss, her mouth opening to interject as the rest of the group groaned and booed their disagreement with the Asgardian's declaration.

It was then that an ear-piercing electronic screech rang through the tower. Nadine flinched in pain along with everyone else, dropping the tablet with a clatter as her hand instinctively rose to protect her ears.

As the sound faded and everyone straightened, Steve was leaning forward next to her as he caught sight of the tablet's bizarre flickering, shooting a brief glance to Nadine as he reached to retrieve it.

But just before his fingers closed around the device, just as he too was opening his mouth to say something, another voice cut him off.

"Worthy…" As one, everyone was glancing up to the source of the unsettling voice. There was something…odd about it that had Nadine's skin prickling with something that felt like warning. Almost immediately she felt the cool detachment that overcame her upon detecting a threat settle over her as alarm bells began ringing through her head. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Natasha reacting in a similar way, her frame loosening in readiness.

"No…how could you be worthy… You're all killers."

It was one of the Iron Legion 'Suits' Stark had rigged up to support the Avengers on missions; Nadine had briefly seen them in action in Sokovia as they'd descended to the city to help minimize collateral casualties. But this one was all wrong. The face and other polymer coverings seemed melted, disintegrating even, as the deformed, piecemeal robot hobbled out into view on knock-kneed, skeletal legs, dripping hydraulic fluid as it went. Her stomach turned as the steady ooze reminded her viscerally of dripping blood.

Beside her Steve stood, calling Stark's name softly, the question clear from his tone alone. Unable to help herself, Nadine's fingers began inching toward her thigh holster, abandoning her drink on the table along with her almost relaxed mood.

"I'm sorry. I was asleep…or was I was a dream," the robot rambled as Stark muttered to himself, the billionaire focusing on his hand-held device in an attempt to puzzle out what was going on. Nadine found herself growing more uneasy with each passing moment, the robot's disjointed, almost drunken movements horribly unsettling. "There was a terrible noise…and I was tangled in…in…strings. I had to kill the other guy." It was as though a sudden chill swept the room. "He was a good guy." Nadine felt her face go blank as her body angled away from the threat, instinctively minimising her body's target area. She barely even registered that she'd stood, or that her compact handgun was suddenly in her hand and casually shielded from the robot's sight in the soft folds of her skirt, the safety already flicked off.

"You killed someone?" Steve asked calmly. Nadine didn't take her eyes from the corrupted Legionnaire, but she didn't need to look to Steve to know he was in Captain America-mode. It was in his voice, his focused frown made audible.

"Wouldn't have been my first call," the robot admitted almost nonchalantly. It sent an uncomfortable tremor through most of the group, Nadine included. "But, down in the real world we're faced with ugly choices."

"Who sent you?" Just as there was no mistaking the Captain in Steve's voice, there was no mistaking the casual command in Thor's tone: a hallmark of his noble upbringing if there ever was one.

The voice they heard next was not the one they expected to hear from the robot. The shock and confusion that rippled through the group was nearly tangible as Stark's voice was played back at them.

"Ultron." The mixture of disbelief and recognition in Dr. Banner's voice did not reassure Nadine in the slightest.

"In the flesh." Against her better judgement, as the robot—Ultron, apparently—began rambling again, Nadine was glancing between Banner and Stark, her unease beginning to deepen to anger at the understanding and troubled looks the pair of scientists were exchanging. Immediately in front of her, Nadine caught a glimpse of Hill similarly taking the safety off the slim gun that had appeared in the former agent's hands as she too slowly stood, while off to the side her peripheral vision noted Thor's grip shifting on his Hammer. Her attention snapped back to where it belonged as Ultron's declaration of being on a mission hung in the air.

"What mission?" Natasha asked cautiously, voicing the question on all their minds. The robot's head tilted, his already discomfiting faceplate taking on a decidedly sinister cast.

"Peace in our time."

And the wall behind him exploded as the remaining Legionnaires burst into the room.

Immediately everyone sprang into action. As the lead Legionnaire barrelled toward them, almost everyone was darting in different directions—save Hill who, in lieu of anywhere else to go, dropped to the floor—and Nadine was vaulting over the back of the couch even as Steve deftly kicked the table at his feet up in a makeshift shield just in time for the robot to crash into it.

The impact sent the Captain flying, the table careening after him, catching Nadine as well before she could dive out of the way. She'd barely hit the ground before shots echoed out through the tower—Hill, if her ringing head could be trusted—the lack of metallic impacts dimly registering as Nadine hastily rolled to her feet, stifling a pained groan. As she spun around, a Legionnaire was being flung deeper into the Tower from an apparent introduction to Thor's Hammer, while her peripheral vision caught Stark and Rhodes hurtling over the railing toward Ultron on the level below.

She needed to move. Without thinking, she was bolting for the table-like counter tucked under the walkway from the level above, just barely making it under as an energy pulse from one of the Legionnaires seared over her head.

As Nadine paused for a moment to catch the breath she'd lost as the coffee table slammed into her, she took quick stock of her surroundings—wincing involuntarily as Natasha and Banner dove over the bar across the way, the doctor proving less than graceful as they took cover behind it—quickly realizing Barton was crouched up against the wall only a few feet from her. The archer was watching the scene out in the rest of the tower intently, murmuring quiet reassurance to the woman beside him whose name Nadine couldn't care to remember in that moment. He caught her eye as she did, a flicker of concern asking just as effectively as words if Nadine was alright. With a brisk nod she glanced back out just in time to catch sight of Natasha popping out from behind the other bar to open fire on the closest robot. Angling herself back out under the counter for a moment, Nadine managed to get off two shots of her own, both easily hitting their mark…not that it seemed to do much good.

Bullets just seemed to bounce off these guys.

But then, Stark had designed them to be resistant to bullet damage…

"This is not the kind of excitement I was looking for in a party," she threw out as she ducked back behind the cover of the counter just in time to avoid being hit by a stray energy pulse. Barton barked out a laugh while the woman—Brittany? Briana? Bri-something—shot them both an incredulous, wide-eyed look.

Only to shriek as a Legionnaire slammed into the wall high over their heads in an attempt to dislodge Steve where he clung to its back, sending an avalanche of shattered tiles down on the trio taking cover below.

An attempt that worked as the Captain lost his grip, allowing the 'bot to toss him down onto the counter's granite surface. He impacted heavily with a dull, pained grunt before crashing to the floor. A flash of fear went through Nadine when the supersoldier didn't immediately move, only for her breath to whoosh out in a gust as he shifted with a groan.

"I'm with you, Ryker," Barton agreed quickly before throwing himself out from under the counter's cover to grab at Steve, half-urging and half-hauling the dazed Captain under cover. Without even thinking, Nadine was again peering over the counter, ready to provide cover as the two Avengers scrambled back behind the counter if they came under fire again.

Out of the corner of her eye, the blonde assassin caught sight of Nat and Banner making a break for the stairs to the upper level. Evidently the Legionnaire she'd been watching saw it too, causing it to spin and begin firing at the pair, the redhead getting off a few shots of her own while just barely managing to pull Banner along quickly enough to keep them ahead of the Legionnaire's pulses. Nadine was up in an instant to add some coverfire of her own, effectively splitting the Legionnaire's attention long enough for Banner and Natasha to reach cover at the top of the stairs. She only just managed to duck back behind the counter herself as a white-hot pulse from the other Legionnaire blurred past her to shatter the bottles above them.

As she scurried back against the cabinets behind her, the Captain shifted so that he was similarly positioned on her right, glancing around her down to Barton as the archer similarly straightened.

"We need to move," Nadine called to the other three over the chaos, barely audible over the crashes and sounds of shattering glass and energy pulses blasting through the tower. The pulses just kept coming, impacting on the surface of the counter and on the shelves and cabinets behind them. Nadine's instinct was to fire back, but she knew she didn't have the bullets for it; she needed to be strategic.

"Down there!" The archer jerked his head back down toward the lower level, near where Stark and Rhodes had disappeared to as the fighting started. With a glance to Steve, Nadine nodded her quick agreement before turning back to track the Legionnaire currently dividing its attention between the four of them and Nat up on the level above. As a result, the Legionnaire couldn't get a proper angle on them at the moment, small mercy as it was. But that would only last until either it moved, or they did.

With a final glance to the two Avengers as Nadine raised her sidearm in ready again, Barton was pulling himself and the other woman into a crouch, quickly informing her on what was about to happen. With a final nod from Steve they all sprung into action.

As soon as Nadine was reaching over the counter again to open fire, her peripheral vision saw Barton urging Stark's girl forward. Mercifully the brunette didn't hesitate. If she had, she'd have run right into an oncoming pulse. As it was, the searing bolt nearly hit Barton, causing the archer to backpedal sharply, just barely making it back behind the counter as more raced toward him.

A flash of concern jolted through Nadine, her eyes trying to flick over to see if Barton was alright. It was enough of a distraction that she nearly wasn't able to dive out of the way as an incoming pulse sent one of the barstools crashing over where her head had been an instant before. As it was, the stool fragments shattered another portion of shelving, sending glass and splinters of wood framing crashing down toward her.

"Ryker!" she heard Barton shout, catching sight of him hesitating, thinking to dart back toward her as she lifted her head. Glass shards fell in a musical rain from her hair and clothes as she insistently waved him off.

"Go!" she snapped out even as Steve let out a shout of his own.

"My shield," he called even as Barton was coiling in preparation for his own mad dash. The archer spared the Captain a final nodding glance in immediate understanding.

Then, like one of his arrows, Barton was springing forward, running for the stairs Stark's girl has disappeared down mere seconds before.

He just barely made it too, the glass wall panels guarding the stairs shattering under the Legionnaire's assault almost the instant he cleared each one.

At the same time as Barton made his dash, Steve was breaking cover himself, racing to the other side of the tower. Though part of her was concerned about why, Nadine was already engaging the last Legionnaire in tandem with Natasha across the way, keeping it busy with her last couple rounds even as Barton re-emerged from the level below and Steve raced around the couches.

A shout—Barton's, Nadine recognized distantly—was the only warning before Steve was catching and sending his shield crashing into the final Legionnaire, smashing it to pieces.

"Well that was dramatic," Ultron declared dryly as the tower fell silent, all eyes turning back to him. "I'm sorry, I know you mean well." Nadine couldn't help but exchange an incredulous look with Barton as she edged around the remnants of the counter to stand next to him while Ultron spoke; the robot was monologuing…actually monologuing.

He only stopped when Thor's Hammer crashed into his mutilated body, the haphazard construction fragmenting and scattering across the floor.

As a pool of fluids seeped slowly from the remnants of his body, a soft, droning tune sounded briefly before fading. Then Ultron's glowing eyes went dark.

Leaving the Tower as silent as a tomb.

A/N: Whew! It was a monster this week! I actually seriously considered splitting this one! But I didn't.

You're welcome ;)

And there was a little Steve/Nadine interaction in there! :P

Thanks for reading!

Don't forget to Review! I live off reviews! :P Also, you know...we're starting to creep up on 200...the quicker we get there...the quicker we get to celebrate! :D *hint hint*

See you next time!

Guest Reviews:

Jag: I will! :) Though, you are going to get your answer to your question in this chapter. See? Patience does pay off! XD I'm glad you're enjoying the sisterly-bonding time! And you are right on both counts, really: the team with the intent of letting Steve know specifically. 'Cause Natasha's crafty that way… ;)

Jenny: Yes. Everyone should listen to Nat, really. She's a smart lady! And yes, he rather does, doesn't he :P And drama, there certainly will be… Hahaha!

Jo: I take it that exclamation means you're enjoying! Lol! I'm glad! Thanks for reviewing!