I don't own The Avengers. Marvel Does. I only own my OCs.
Ultron, Thor, Loki and Carol stepped towards the giant beehive, and when they found the entrance, the Asgardians peeked through the archway until they confirmed the coast was clear.
"Loki, if anything happens, can you conceal Carol?" Thor asked as they cautiously proceeded into the hive, "out of all of us she is in the most danger whether she is in here or out there."
Loki sighed as he facepalmed. He made a brief glance at Ultron while the robot lifted Carol into his arms and cradled her before the trickster returned his attention to Thor.
"I suppose I could try," Loki replied, "but there is a possibility that Ultron can protect her more."
"More than an illusion that would make her all but invisible?" Thor raised one brow, "or are you worried that such a thing would be beyond you?"
Loki shook his head in disbelief before he scanned the entrance one more time. Loki glanced at his brother and nodded in approval. Upon cue, Thor turned away from the entrance and raised his Mjolnir into the air. At a distance, Ultron saw that as a signal so he carried Carol closer to the entrance while she rested her chin on his shoulder.
"Carol, it's ok," Ultron purred, "I'll do what I can to ensure you don't get hurt, ok?"
"Mhmm," Carol squeaked.
Once Ultron arrived at the entrance with Carol in his arms, they, Thor and Loki stepped inside the beehive. The interior of the hive was dimly lit only by whatever sunlight managed to creep in through crevices. Bees gathered in masses on all sides, and soon it became a challenge to not wander into the path of the flying insects.
"Why does it have to be bees?" Ultron murmured, keeping track of all possible approaches in case any of the swarm came close enough to even brush past Carol, "hey Reindeer Games, any idea how close we are to that stone?"
"The labyrinth is underground," Loki answered, "so we'll have to find some sort of entrance within the hive."
"I might have a trick or two to make that easier," Ultron said, leaning down a bit to avoid letting a bee brush against his head.
He held out one hand, and several small objects detached from his forearm and floated in the air, emitting a little red light like an eye. They took off ahead of the group, weaving through the horde of bees and splitting off through different passages. Each drone transmitted navigational data back to Ultron, crafting a map of the hive within his head.
"Now," Ultron advised, "why don't you follow my lead?"
While holding Carol in his arms, Ultron stepped ahead of the Asgardians who gave each other confused glances.
"I suppose your robot friend does not disappoint," Loki commented.
Thor nodded in agreement. Thor and Loki followed Ultron through the beehive, the robot scanning the passageways before entering through one of them. While they wandered through the passageway, the drones kept Ultron updated in case any swarms were in the way, although there didn't seem to be any so far. However, when Ultron, Thor and Loki emerged from the passageway, a nearby giant worker bee spotted them and Carol and its hairs extended in shock.
"Halt!" it shouted, "intruders! Intruders!"
Loki immediately held out one hand as arcane energies flourished from his palm and struck the bee, making it sway and collapse to the ground.
"Move," he calmly said to the group, his jaw set as the buzzing of the swarm approached from all directions.
Ultron picked up speed while Thor moved ahead with Mjolnir in hand, flashing sparks of electricity to ward off any bees who attempted to get too close. Loki came up behind, using his magic to stall the pursuing swarm which filled the passage behind him.
Sliding to a stop, Loki inhaled and held out both hands before a stream of frost flew from both of his palms and constructed a wall of ice, temporarily impeding the majority of the bees. During this act his skin turned blue while his eyes took on an almost luminous red tint until he ceased his use of his Jotun based abilities. While the trickster started catching up, Ultron held Carol close to his chest while he sprinted through the passageway with Thor following him. The robot read his radar and considered instructing Thor to attack when they reach the other side. Once they left the passageway, Thor and Ultron could see another swarm of giant bees waiting for them.
"Thor," Ultron requested, "a little help here?"
Thor nodded in agreement and sprinted forward, his Mjolnir at the ready. But before he could strike, the bees charged and knocked Thor and Ultron to the ground, the robot losing his grip of Carol. Just as Ultron staggered to his feet, Carol scooted backwards with her eyes widened in horror as one bee slowly approached her. Ultron wanted to locate Carol, but he could see the giant bees still surrounding him and Thor while Loki emerged from the passageway. Suddenly…
"Ultron, help!" Ultron heard Carol scream.
Ultron turned his head and his optics widened in horror as he saw a giant bee carrying Carol while she struggled to free herself.
"CAROL!"
Optics blazing with fury, Ultron unleashed a blast from each palm and scattered the bees in close proximity to him while Thor swung Mjolnir once and sent one flying into the air before calling upon his signature lightning, scattering many bees as they fled in terror. But to the robot's dismay, the giant bee carried Carol with it as it flew away, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.
"Oh, great," grumbled Ultron, "they got Carol."
Ultron began to lower his head, so Thor placed his hand on the robot's chest.
"Do not fret, my friend," he assured the robot, "we'll get her back."
Thor extended Mjolnir head of him to prove his point.
"We could fight through as many giant bees as we can to get to her before they could harm her," Thor continued.
"I would not recommend it," interrupted Loki, "that could make the situation worse."
Ultron and Thor turned their heads in Loki's direction, giving him a blank stare.
"Are you saying we should just let them kill her?" Ultron demanded.
Loki shook his head.
"We need a stealth plan…and fast," he suggested, "I do not want to risk Thanos locating the Soul Stone."
Meanwhile, the giant worker bee carried Carol through the various chambers in the hive until it reached the queen's chamber, the teenage girl whimpering in fear. The other bees in the chamber and their queen caught a glimpse of the scared human as the worker bee set her down on the ground in front of the queen.
"What is this?" asked the queen bee, gesturing to Carol.
The worker bee landed next to Carol as she crouched down and hugged her knees to her chest.
"We found this trespasser wandering in our hive," the worker bee explained, "there are three more on the loose."
The giant worker bee turned its head at Carol.
"Although," the worker bee continued, "they seem different from the creatures we've seen outside."
The queen bee rose up from her throne and hovered over to Carol.
"I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die," Carol whimpered, "don't kill me, don't kill me…"
"Where did you come from?" the queen bee interrupted.
Carol snapped out of her thoughts and tilted her head towards the queen bee. She wanted to answer, but she couldn't bring herself to speak, so she ended up whimpering in fear. Her response caused the queen bee to give her a confused stare.
"She doesn't seem to be the kind of spy for the Wasps," the queen bee said to herself.
Upon hearing those words, Carol placed her hands behind her head.
"I hate wasps, I hate wasps, I hate wasps!" Carol cried softly, "bees are scary, but wasps…are the worst!"
Carol didn't say anything further, so the queen bee turned her head at the worker bee.
"Since we can't seem to get much answers from her," the queen bee instructed, "make sure the other trespassers make their way here and explain why they dare to come into our hive."
"Right away, your majesty," the worker bee nodded.
While the giant worker bee flew out of the queen's chamber, the queen bee lowered her head and grabbed Carol's collar with her mandibles, causing the human to yelp in panic.
"No, don't eat me, don't eat me!" she protested.
Surprisingly, the queen bee slowly dragged Carol until she lowered the human onto the throne before settling into the throne herself. While the queen bee nuzzled her head against her face, Carol had numerous questions pop into her head while she tried to lean away from the touch. Should she try to get away? Is this colony a hostile one? Do they even kill any trespassers? She snapped out of her thoughts when she felt the queen bee's leg tuck itself behind her back, so Carol whimpered and tried to tilt her head away from the queen bee.
"Are you frightened?" the queen bee asked, "poor creature."
"I can't…stand bees," Carol muttered, "I can't…"
Without warning, the queen bee withdrew her leg and allowed Carol to scoot away from her, even if it was only a tiny distance.
"Are there bees in the place you came from?" the queen bee asked.
Carol inhaled deeply. Maybe she should try a conversation until she could find a way back to Ultron.
"Y-Yeah," Carol stammered, "but they're a lot smaller than me."
Carol fought the urge to cry, even if she was on the verge of hyperventilating.
"But…I can't let any of them sting me even once," she continued, "or I'll die instantly."
The queen bee didn't respond any further, not sure what caused Carol's fear in the first place. After a long while of silence, a few giant soldier bees entered the queen's chamber and seconds after that, Ultron, Thor and Loki followed suit. One glimpse at the tall silver robot was enough for Carol to jump out of the throne and scurry across the room.
"Ultron!" Carol called out, tears starting to well up in her eyes.
Upon hearing his name, Ultron tilted his head, noticing his girlfriend running closer to him as he kept walking. Moments later, he knelt down and allowed Carol to embrace herself to him, the metal segments of his face reshaping into a smile as she gasped for breath.
"It's ok, Carol," Ultron whispered, "I'm here."
"I…I thought I was…going to die," Carol muttered.
Ultron gently stroked her back while he kissed the top of her head. After a moment of silence, Ultron turned his head at noticed all eyes were glued on him.
"We do not have all day," reminded Loki.
Thor placed his hand on Loki's shoulder.
"Relax," Thor assured him, "she might've been scared to death."
Without responding to either of the Asgardians, Ultron lifted Carol into his arms before he followed Thor and Loki across the bridge. They stopped a few meters away from the queen bee's throne while the giant soldier bees landed in front of them and bowed their heads.
"The metal creature was agitated when we found them," explained a soldier bee, "but it took our offer to release our prisoner in exchange for an explanation on why they came here."
The queen bee nodded in agreement, dismissing the soldier bees while she tilted her head towards Thor, Loki and Ultron.
"So what brings you here into our colony?" she asked.
Thor was about to step forward, but Loki grabbed his lower arm, stopping him in his tracks.
"I'll do the talking," Loki offered.
Thor hesitated for a moment before he nodded in agreement. The trickster took a few steps forward, eyes locked onto the queen bee.
"Your majesty," Loki explained, "my apologies for the intrusion, for we did not intend to disturb your colony. We came here because we believe a certain artifact might be buried underneath this hive, and we were trying to look for the entrance to a labyrinth that holds it. Do you know of this?"
The queen bee tilted her head in curiosity.
"I see," the queen bee mused, "well, some of the workers found an entrance to an underground maze a long time after this hive was built. Would you like me to provide you an escort?"
"No thank you," Ultron declined, "I think we can find it ourselves."
The queen bee tilted her head in Carol's direction.
"In that case, do you know whether this little creature is in good health?" she asked, gesturing to Carol, "she fears her life will end in tragedy if the bees of her world sting her even just once."
Ultron glanced at Carol softly before returning his gaze to the queen bee.
"I'll discuss it with her later," Ultron offered.
The queen bee nodded in agreement. Seconds later, a messenger bee appeared before the throne.
"Inform the rest of the colony that these visitors are not a threat," the queen bee instructed.
The messenger bee nodded before it flew off. The queen bee returned her attention to Ultron, Thor and Loki.
"Now, if you do find the artifact you were seeking," she advised, "make sure its powers do not harm the colony."
Thor gave a confident smile while raising Mjolnir into the air.
"Not to worry, your majesty," Thor assured, "we will not allow destruction to desolate your hive."
With the queen bee's approval, Ultron, Thor and Loki turned to leave the queen's chamber with Carol still in the robot's arms. For them, this was one obstacle they were able to overcome in their quest for the Soul Stone.
I'm still open to suggestions on how to continue the fanfic.
Please leave a review, so Ultron and Loki would be happy.