Voices Inside Me

An Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes Fan Fiction

Hi! So, because there was one absolutely fabulous review that made me smile despite having a rotten day, I decided to make a quick update. Here you go!

And by the way, my computer absolutely hates me. It didn't save 2000 words. I nearly cried when I had to rewrite it all. But I did make some improvements, so it wasn't all bad. I'm pretty satisfied with it now.

Oh, and I just saw the Ant-Man movie. I loved it :)

Disclaimer: I do not own A:EMH

Chapter 2

Hank looked down at the mystery girl in disbelief. He couldn't believe that his creation had done this; that his work has led to the possession of an innocent teenaged girl. He hung his head. Great, he thought. Something else to make me feel guilty. As if there wasn't enough already.

He shook his head. No. Ultron did this; he was an AI, he made his own decisions. Still, Hank couldn't stop the burden from creeping into his heart.

The first thing she was aware of was sound. Multiple male voices chatted around her, their words not quite comprehensible. One of them seemed to be grunting a lot, and when a woman's voice was added to the equation, she only grew more confused.

Pain made itself known next. She had a killer headache, her left eye was throbbing, and her whole body felt tight and swollen, as if there was something alien in it. The lot of it combined made her groan.

Finally, her vision returned. Seven faces came into focus. A few were concerned, more than one was suspicious, and one was decidedly green. Her eyes widened and it took all of her will power to not let even a squeak out. Scanning the rest of the faces, she saw four blond men, one brunette, and, to her dismay, only one woman. "Where am I?"

One of the blonds, the tallest with the shoulder to waist ratio of a dorito, spoke to her. "Miss, you are safe. What is your name?"

She braced her arms, trying to sit up, and the woman quickly knelt down and put an arm around her to help. "Anna Elizabeth Rose. Call me Annabeth. I repeat, where-" She broke off as her left eye suddenly pulsed. "Ow!"

The green man grunted. "Too long. I'll call you Beth."

Annabeth's sight focused on him. "Oh my gosh, you're Hulk. I am actually talking to Hulk." She started hyperventillating. "So that means that the rest of you guys must be-"

The woman cur her off. "Yep, the Avengers!" She offered a brilliant smile. "I'm Jan."

Shaking her head, Annabeth tried to stand. Moving too quickly, her vision blanked for a moment and she swayed uncertainly. She felt someone pick her up bridal style and move somewhere, presumably towards a chair. Her vision clearing, Annabeth thought she might pass out again. Hawkeye is carrying me bridal style. This could quite possibly be the best day of my life.

All too soon, the good captain set her down on a couch as the rest of the Avengers lined up before her. She could name them all: Hank Pyn and Janet van Dyne, Ant-Man and Wasp respectively; Hulk; Clint Barton, Hawkeye; Thor; Steve Rogers, Captain America and oddly on crutches; and finally- "Tony Stark. You're my hero!" She immediately blished bright red at the involuntary admission.

Hawkeye burst out laughing, Wasp giggled a little, and Mr. Stark looked uncomfortable, muttering under his breath. She turned even more red. "I'm sorry, it's just that your work related to renewable energy and computerized exoskeletons is absolutely amazing. Stark Indistries holds a key station in bioelectric R&D. No other company even comes close to the strides you are making. I mean, your suit is one of a kind and at least two decades ahead of your closest competitor!"

Everyone went quiet, simply looking at her. She ducked her head, embarrassed.

"She is smarter than she looks," Thor declared.

Mr. Stark shook his head. "The problem here isn't Stark Industries or crazy fangirls. We need to figure out what the hell to do with her."

"Language, please, Mr. Stark," she said on instinct, immediately wishing she could go crawl in a hole and die. "And what do you mean, what to do with me?"

"Well, we can't just toss her out on the streets, if that's what you're suggesting," Dr. Pym said.

Stark looked apalled at the very idea. "Of course not! I was just wondering if we should call her parents, considering the whole AI situation."

"Excuse me," she cut in, "but you couldn't call my parents even if you tried, sir." She was distracted as her eye let out another pulse, hissing in pain.

"Why not?" Mr. Stark asked, confused.

Wincing and pressing a palm to her left eye in an effort to quell the throbbing, she said curtly, "They're dead. Have been since I was seven."

Nice job making things awkward, Annabeth, she scolded herself. You don't want their pity and you don't want false condolences. Now they're going to send you back to foster care. Her nose crinkled at the thought.

There was a pause. "Who do you live with, then?" Clint asked.

"No one. I was in foster care for a while, but I left." Fled would probably be a better word to use. "Last I remember, it was Halloween night and I was trying to find a nice tree to sleep under."

The group realed back. " Are you sure it was Halloween?" Dr. Pym asked.

Annabeth was confused. What was so hard to believe about that? "Yes, why?"

Jan answered, "Its nearly September. If what you are saying is true, then you are missing about ten months worth of memory."

Tony Stark was utterly baffled, and he found he detested the feeling. One mintue, this girl is Ultron, the next she is an awkward fangirl with no family and a missing memory. His mind reeled, knowing his team would look to him and hoping to find some answers to satisfy their hunger.

He stared down at the girl. "How old are you?"

She thought. "If all that time really has passed, as you say... nearly fifteen. My birthday is October seventh."

Why on earth would Ultron possess a teenager who can't even drive? And more importantly, how did he possess a teenager?

Tony held his hands out, and the girl stared at them uncomprehendingly. He raised an eyebrow. "Come on, up you go." Understanding, Annabeth placed her hands in his and Tony hauled her up to her feet. "Feel weird at all? Pain, discomfort, anything?"

Multiple emotions raged war across the girl's face, most of them unidentifiable. Apparently, honesty won out and the girl replied, "Yeah. My whole body aches, it feels like something invaded my body, and my left eye is thro- ow!" She winced and her hand shot up to said left eye.

Interesting. The silver eye causes pain... Tony looked to Hank. "What equipment do you have in that lab?"

Understanding flashed in his eyes. "More than enough to do a check up. Come on."

The girl stayed stubbornly stuck in place. "Where are we going?"

I hate to pull this card, but... ah, who am I kidding? I've been waiting for forever to pull this card! Tony looked her square in thr eye. "Look, we're the Avenegers. You pretty much have to trust us, you know, saviors of the world and all that."

Annabeth wasn't amused. "I'd still like to know where we are going."

Tont raised an eyebrow. "Look, we're just going to go down to Hank's lab. We would like to figure out what's going on."

She brightened. "You mean why I'm in pain? Great, the sooner we figure it out, the sooner I'll feel better. Lead on."

Yeah, that's what we need to figure out.

A few hours later, the whole group, minus Annabeth, was gathered down in Hank's lab.

Jan thought her head was going to burst. She was pretty smart in her own right, but what Hank was explaining was over her head. "So you're saying she's a cyborg?"

Hank frowned. "Not exactly, no. She is still inherently human." He turned towards the X-rays displayed before the group, displaying various bones and systems im the girl's body. "See these lines here? Those are wires. Very complicated, almost guarranteed to be one of a kind. They've tapped into Annabeth's nervous system. It was done carefully, so as not to risk paralysis, but they follow her nerves. With a complicated programming algorythm, a man, or AI, could potentially control her every move, down to wiggling her fingers."

Hank moved on to a scan of Annabeth's brain. "That's not all. See these patterns here? That's a control panel. Ultron has literally installed himself onto Miss Rose." He faced the group and looked each of them in the eye. "If we tried to remove him, we would most likely kill her."

There was a prolonged silence, then Steve stated, "Killing Miss Rose is not an option. She is an innocent in all this."

Clint cleared his throat. "Look, I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but are we sure she is innocent?"

All eyes turned towards him. He held his hands up defensively. "I'm just saying, we have no way of knowing if her story is true or not."

Tony spoke up. "Sure we do. JARVIS, search all records, key words Anna Elizabeth Rose."

"Yes, sir. Searching for records pertaining to Miss Rose." Everyone was silent as they waited on JARVIS. Finally, the AI said, "Sir, it seems most of her records have been deleted by a third party. The bare minimum remain, but the majority is gone."

"Well, pull up the 'bare minimum' then."

"Right away, sir." Annabeth's files popped into existence. Tony quickly flipped through them.

"Let's see what we have here. Born to Gail Catherine and Howard Raymond Rose, had two older brothers, Samuel Duane and Aaron Cecil." Tony frowned. "The only other thing is a breif newspaper clipping mentioning a fire, the deaths of her family, and her entry into the foster system." His frown deepened. "This girl is practically a ghost."

Unease enetered Jan's mind. "So, does that mean that she isn't who she says she is?"

Tony thoight, then shook his head. "No. If this was a false identity provided by Ultron, he probably would have gone to great lengths to prove her existence with everything from report cards to dental reports. No, its likely that Ultron tried to erase Annabeth completely from the system. He probably wanted to create a whole new identity, but I have a sneaking suspiscion that Ultron is having trouble controlling her, and so can't erase everything about her before Annabeth fights back."

Tony turned back to the group. "Cap is right. We can't kill her. Not only because she's innocent, but also because she's just a kid. She can't even drive yet."

Hank scanned the group one more time, and then replied, "Well, then, I think Miss Rose herself ought to be included in this conversation."

Annabeth frowned at the computer in front of her. The records she was looking at had never been released to the public. As she read on, her frown only grew deeper. When she heard footsteps echoing down the hallway, she quickly closed down her current tab, erased her internet search history, and clicked over to the tab opened to a gaming site called Girls Go Games. Stifling a grimace, she began "styling" Rapunzel's hair as someone entered the room.

"Annabeth?" Jan asked, uncertainty creeping into her voice. "We have the results of your check up." Plastering a small smile on her face, she followed after the superhero.

When they entered Dr. Pym's lab, Annabeth's eyebrows shot up; all of the Avengers at the mansion were seated in rolling chairs, discussing something with grim looks on their face. The minute she walked in, they stopped talking and Dr. Pym stood up. "Look," he began, "before we say anything, I just wanted it made clear that we are going to do everything in our power to help you."

She couldn't could back an acerbic comment. "You mean like you helped Simon Williams?"

They all froze looking at her, and slowly, Mr. Stark got to his feet. "How do you know about that?"

She scoffed. "I was just trying to catch up on all I missed while I was out. I would've thought that you would've upgraded your security system after T'Challa brok in, but I guess not. Your AI keeps extensive records," she tagged on.

Mr. Stark looked confused. "Yes, but those records are password protected."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Then pick a better password. It wasn't that hard to guess. All I had to do was go to Netflix, look at your most recently watched shows, and start plugging in names. Who knew Mr. Stark was a fan of Once Upon a Time? I would not have pegged him as a Rumbelle shipper." She snickered.

Jan looked at Mr. Stark in interest. "You're a Oncer? And you ship Rumbelle?"

Stark glared at Annabeth. "That is irrelevant. And this about Annabeth, not me."

She smirked. "Right. So, to avoid another Wonder Man happening, here's what's gonna happen: you're going to explain everything, and I'm going to hold off all questions till the end. Standard procedure." She gestured for Dr. Pym to procede.

He cleared his throat. "Uh, right." He turned to the X-rays and scans. Glancing at her, he launched into the same explanation he gave the team, and the girl, true to her word, kept silent, her face expressionless.

When Dr. Pym was done, she said, "So, basically, an AI you guys created, who wants to eliminate mankind, is currently residing in my head. He basically installed himself in me, kind of like the Host." She was met only with blank stares, she decided for herself. "Yeah, like the Host."

She looked at the full team. "So, what am I gonna do now? I have no where to go."

Hull grinned. "You stay here."

Hawkeye nodded. "Yeah. We have an extra room here, so you can stay and we can keep an eye- oof!" Mr. Stark had elbowed him right in the gut.

"We want you close so we can figure out how to help you. Dr. Pym and I will find a way to get Ultron out of you." Mr. Stark offered an insincere smile.

Annabeth frowned. "You can just say you don't trust me and want to keep am eye on me. I won't get offended. I get it. There's a maniacal AI stuck in my body bent on destroying the human race. Speaking of which, why is Ultron in my body if he is bent on destroying the human race?"

Dr. Pym shrugged. "That's the question we all want answered."

"Well then, can I- whoa! Head rush." She swayed and put her hands on her head.

'I should think so.'

She whirled around. "Who said that?" The Avengers looked at her, startled.

The voice chuckled. 'Your precious Avengers can't help you now, sweetheart. You're mine.'

"I'm not anyones!" she cried.

'So you say. I disagree.' The voice faded out in the end, leaving behind a splitting headache. Her left eye thobbed, and the pain drove her to her knees.

Dr. Pym knelt beside her. "Are you alright?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She grunted. "Right as rain," she hissed.

"No, you're not." She turned and saw Jan kneeling on her other side.

"Yes, I am!" She forced her way to feet and pride swelled in her when she didn't sway at all. The headache remained. "Though, some pain meds would be appreciated."

As Jan hustled off, Annabeth looked up and met the dark, intelligent eyes of Tony Stark. "It seems Ultron just communicated with Annabeth."

"Oh, I don't know, maybe it was the President. No duh, it was Ultron!" she responded sarcastically.

Stark raised an eyebrow, and it occured to Annabeth that maybe he wasn't used to being sassed by a person less than half his age. Better change the subject... "Uh, is there somewhere I could sleep? I'm beat."

Taking the oppurtunity for the adults to talk, he hustle Annabeth out of the room. The finally stopped before a plain white door. "This is your room. Mine is across the hallway and JARVIS can help you with anything you need. Good night!"

Annabeth watched in amusement as the grown man ran away down the hallway. "I'm gonna guess thay JARVIS is the AI," she muttered.

"Pleasure to meet you, Miss Rose." The sudden response made her jump.

"Oh! You startled me." She placed her hand on her beating heart. "Are you installed in every room?" she asked, spotting the camera a little further down the hallway.

"Yes. Mr. Stark insists, I'm afraid."

Annabeth shrugged. "At least I'll have someone to talk to. Just don't watch while I sleep, 'kay?"

"I wouldn't dream of it, Miss."

Nodding in satisfaction, Annabeth opened the door to her room, smiling in genuine delight when she saw the purple bed spread, pillows and curtains. "I love purple!"

Surveying the room, she spotted a cozy reading nook fully stocked with classics and a wood desk in the corner. Another door, painted white with artful purple flowers to match the bed spread, lead to a pristine bathroom.

Returning back to the bed, nothing looked better than sliding between the sheets. "JARVIS?"

"Yes, Miss Rose?"

"Do you happen to know where I might a change of clothes and a pair of pajamas?"

"I believe Miss van Dyne might be willing to lend you a pair. Contacting her now." The AI was silent for a moment, then stated, "She is on her way now."

A soft smile echoed on her face. "Thank you, JARVIS. I think you and I are going to be the best of friends."

"I look forward to it, miss."

Annaberh wandered over to the reading nook and took out Great Expectations. Pip had already come into his inheritance by the time Jan knocked on her door. Carefully marking her page, Annabeth set the book down and opened the door to see Wasp holding a stack of carefully folded clothes. She held them out. "Here you go. You and I are about the same size, so I put in a few changes of clothes."

A careful, sweet smile formed on Annabeth's lips. "Thank you. I really appreciate it."

Jan waived it away. "Oh, it was nothing!" Her tone turned serious. "Hey, I just wanted you to know that if you ever need to talk to anyone, my door is always open."

Annabeth's smile faltered for a minute before she pulled it back into place. "Thank you. Good night."

Jan smiled. "Sleep tight!"

Once she had changed into the pajamas Jan had lent her (grey with little owls), she crawled into bed amd tried to fall asleep. Her body wanted to sleep, but her mind wanted to think. "JARVIS? Is there a piano somewhere I can play?"

"Of course, miss. Would you like me to guide you there?"

"Yes please." Following JARVIS's instructions, Annabeth soon found herself before s gleaming set of glass French doors. She pushed them open, and a real grin sprang to life one her face. It was a beautiful music room, painted deep red with accent cloths of cream and gold, reminiscent of ballrooms in times long gone. Every manner of instrument could be found, from a grand piano to an acoustic guitar.

Without any further adieu, she sat down at the piano and began to play.

Hulk sat in his room, thinking. Something about the girl smelled off. Deep inside, he could feel Banner's pity towards the girl, but Banner wasn't the one in control.

Hawkeye sat on his bed, fingering an arrow. Two problems waged war in his mind, vying for his attention.

Natasha.

Ultron.

Natasha.

Ultron.

Letting out a frustrated snarl, he cast away the arrow and crawled into bed, hoping a little sleep would clear his mind.

Hank Pym was down in his lab, looking over everything again. Trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes, he looked again at the scans of Annabeth's brain, hoping that something might just make sense. Shaking his head when such an epiphany wasn't forth coming, he closed doen the files and headed up to his room, hoping sleep would making the solution obvious.

Janet van Dyne paced in her room. Maybe it was because of the fact that Annabeth was the first female she had come into prolonged contact with for months, but Jan had a strong urge to make sure she was alright. She shook her head; nothing she could do now. Everyone, including herself, could benefit from a little sleep.

Thor sat in his chamber, staring at Mjolnir. That girl... she did not make sense. She confused him, and he had yet to get a handle one her personity. It seemed the girl did not want people to know her real self. Maybe that is why she seemed so resistent to help.

Steve Rogers was in the sitting room, in front of the fire, the awful crutches leaned on the chair beside him. He felt so helpless, and he despised the feeling. He wanted to help Annabeth, but the science involved was way out of his league. Staring at the flickering flames, he tried to think of someway to help.

Tony Stark paced around the mansion, working his way through the events of the day and trying to get them to make sense in his mind. In his heart, he knew he had to at least try to find a way to deal with Ultron, but his mind was telling him that multiple lives could be at stake. He shook his head; that decision was already made.

The soft echoing of piano music suddenlt could be heard, startling Tony. Piano hadn't been played at the mansion since his mother had lived there. Following the noise, he stopped in front of the music room, pushed the door open slightly, and sat down in the hallway with his back to the wall. For a while, he just listened.

When there was a lull in , JARVIS asked, "Miss, if I may, why did you ask to play?"

The piano started back up in quiet arpeggios as the girl responded, "Music helps me to organize my mind. I have the most chaotic mind I know, and playing offers it solace."

"Mr. Stark often has similar issues," the AI stated, knowing full well that Tony was listening. "Perhaps you could talk to him."

The music paused before resuming. "I think Mr. Stark has better things to do than listen to my inner musings. Besides, its not just that."

"Then what is it?"

The music stopped completely. "I learned long ago that destruction and negativity go hand in hand, and that positivity and creation go together. So, whenever I need to feel better, I pick up a pen or pencil, or sit down at the piano, and I start to create."

"That was lovely, miss," JARVIS responded. The girl only hummed in response and resumed in her playing.

And for once in his life, Tony Stark just sat still and listened.