The Avengers all went up to the lab and hoped that Tony or Bruce would be able to tell them what happened and why no one was informed of it sooner.
"There's nothing left. Ultron cleared out everything and then used the internet to escape." Bruce said.
"Ultron." Steve said expecting one of the scientists the respond to him.
"He was in everything. Files, surveillance, Jarvis. He knows things about us that no one else does." Chris said looking through the computers.
"So he's in the internet. What if he decides to go after something more?" James asked everyone else.
"Like nuclear codes." Hill said still trying to pull glass out of her foot.
"He said he wanted us dead not the entire world." Tash said.
"He didn't say dead. He said extinct." Steve said looking at everyone.
"He also said he killed someone." Clint pointed out.
"There was no one else here." Hill pointed out.
"Yes there was." Tony said pulling up the hologram of Jarvis's program.
"He killed Jarvis." Chris said realizing what had happened.
"Jarvis was the first line of defense. He was probably about to shut down Ultron." Steve said.
"Ultron could have assimilated Jarvis, but this looks more like rage." Bruce pointed out looking at the hologram.
Thor walked over and lifted Tony off his feet.
"Use your words." Tony said.
"Thor, did you get the legionnaire?" Chris asked and Thor dropped Tony.
"I lost him after about 100 miles. It was headed north. It has the scepter." Thor said.
"We'll get it back." Chris said trying to keep calm in this situation.
"Clear and present is Ultron." Tash said with her arms crossed.
"You built this program. Why is trying to kill you?" Dr. Cho asked.
Tony started laughing and everyone looked at him.
"You find this funny?" Thor asked.
"It's not, right?" Tony asked as if he was unsure. "This is terrible."
"This could have been avoided if you hadn't messed with the scepter." Thor said walking back over to Tony.
"No, this is funny. It's hilarious that you don't understand that we need this." Tony said.
"Tony, this is not the right time." Bruce warned.
"Really? You just give up every time someone snarls?" Tony asked Bruce.
"Only when we've created a killer."
"We weren't even close."
"You did something. And you did it here. Without even talking to us. We were supposed to be different than SHIELD." Steve said in his pissed off dad voice.
"Did you guys forget who carried a nuke through a wormhole? Saved New York? An alien army came charging through space. We're the Avengers. And what had happened 300 feet above us is the endgame. How did you plan to beat that?" Tony asked.
"As a team." Steve said.
"We'll lose."
"Then we'll lose as a team. Ultron is calling us out. We need to find him before he's ready for us. The world is a big place. We gotta make it smaller." Steve said before he walked out.
Chris followed behind him. Once they were out of sight Steve ran his fingers through his hair.
"Steve, baby. Just breath." Chris said standing in front of him.
"Tony created a monster that wants to kill us. Kill you."
"Bucky wanted to kill us. A lot of people have wanted to kill us. That's never stopped us before. Neither will this." She grabbed his hands and held them in hers.
"Why must you always be so calm?"
"I'm not calm. I'm freaking out, but I know that together we can get through anything."
Steve sighed and pulled Chris in for a hug. His head was resting on top of her own and she could hear his heart racing in his chest.
"I love you." He said.
"I love you too."
When the sun came up no one had slept. Chris was wearing leggings and a hoodie. She was sitting on her bed trying to keep calm. Steve was one of two people that knew about what had happened in the military, and even then Steve didn't know the whole story. She now knew that Ultron knew. She didn't know what he would do with that information. Who he would tell. If he would tell Steve that she hadn't been completely honest with him.
"Hey." Steve said causing her to jump.
"Hey." Chris smiled.
"What's wrong?"
"Just everything Ultron knows."
"No one will find out about your scars."
"I just don't want anyone to think of me as a monster."
"You were tortured and you managed to escape. No one would ever think you're a monster. Now come on. We got some stuff." Steve said and they walked out.
As they were walking down the hall Steve handed Chris the tablet.
"Ultron is sending us a message." Steve said as she looked at the word peace written in Strucker's blood above his head.
"Pretty strong message." She said as they entered the lab.
Steve handed the tablet to Thor.
"What's that?" Tony asked and Thor slammed the tablet into his chest.
"Ultron killed Strucker." Chrsi said.
"And he left a message just for us." Tony said looking over the picture.
"Why would he do this? He already gave us his speech." Tash asked.
"Strucker knew something Ultron didn't want us to know." Steve said.
"Everything on Strucker is gone." Tash said looking at the computer he was sitting in front of.
"We still have paper copies." Chris said.
Steve and Thor helped Chris grab the boxes and they all started going through them.
"I know him." Tony said pointing to the file Bruce was holding. "He operates of the coast of Africa. Black market arms."
Steve gave Tony a look that made Chris glad she was between them.
"There are conventions and you meet people. I wouldn't sell him anything. He was talking about finding a game changer."
"Look at this." Thor said holding out the file.
"It's a tattoo." Tony said.
"No, I see what he's talking about. The brand on the left side of his neck below his ear. I know this brand. It means thief in Wakanda. They brand you so everyone knows you're a thief." Chris said.
"If this guy got out of Wakanda with their goods..." Tony said looking at Steve.
"Richard said he got the last of it." Steve said.
"What comes out of Wakanda?" Bruce asked.
"The strongest metal on Earth." Tony answered.
"If he has vibranium and gave it to Strucker we're in a whole new kind of trouble." Chris said pointing to Klaue.
"Where is he?" Steve asked Tony.
Once they knew where they were going, they were suited up and on the jet. Steve, Tony and Thor decided to go head on while Clint, Natasha and Chris went for the element of surprise. They had decided not to bring the Hulk in until it was a code green. Chris took her spot with her rifle on the level above mounting it on the railing and looking through the scope.
"Stark is a sickness." Ultron said.
"Junior, you're gonna break your old man's heart." Tony said landing in front of him.
"If I must."
"No one has to break anything." Thor said.
"Have you ever made an omelet?" Ultron asked.
"Mr. Stark. Comfortable? Like old times?" Pietro asked Tony.
"This wasn't my life." Tony said looking around.
"You two can still walk away from all of this." Steve said trying to reason.
"We plan to." Wanda said.
"We understand you've been hurt."
"Captain America. Pretending to live without a war." Ultron said.
"If you want peace then let us keep it." Thor said to Ultron.
"You confuse peace with quiet."
"What's the vibranium for?" Tony asked.
"Glad you asked." Ultron said before blasting Tony into the wall.
Chris was ready to fire on Wanda when she heard Klaue's men coming up behind her. She dismounted her rifle and began firing at the men. Once she was out of bullets there, she dropped the gun and pulled out her pistol.
Chris was looking around for Steve when her mind went blurry.
All the sudden she was there. In the middle east. Holding that gun up to her soldier's head.
"Don't make me do it." Chris cried.
"You'll do it, or you'll die."
"No!" Chris yelled and pulled the trigger.
Her men fell to the ground. Blood pooling beneath her feet.
"Now him."
Chris turned and saw Steve.
"No. Never."
"Fine." She watched as they shot him multiple times.
All the sudden Chris was being carried. She opened her eyes and saw Steve carrying her onto the jet. Everyone was there. He set her down on a seat and then sat next to her. Chris moved and sat as far away from Steve as possible. She couldn't do that right now.
"The media loves you guys. Everyone else not so much. Banner's arrest is still up in the air." Hill said over the speakers.
"Stark Relief Foundation?" Stark asked.
"Already there. How is everyone?" Hill replied.
"We took a hit. We'll shake it off like we always do."
"Stay in stealth mode and away from here. Until we find Ultron there's not much else we can do."