Welcome back to this week's chapter. It's Ultron's second appearance and the second major mission for Astraea.
Some parts are obviously more made-up by me than manipulated from the actual movie plot as there is some time jumps in the scene as well as some jumps between characters so you don't actually get any of the in-between parts. So, enter my imagination and a bit of artistic licence, and I'll try to fill in the gaps for Y'all.
I hope you enjoy this.
As always, I only own OCs and original plot parts. I do not own all of Marvel - if I did I would be a hella lot richer than I am right now.
There the hell is Wakanda
Apparently, Wakanda is an intensely private African nation that was the source of vibranium (the super rare metal that Cap's shield was made from) and that was just about all the rest of the world really knows about it. Which isn't really anything at all to go on, but I guess that's the plan. Then nobody can really make any plan of attack if they don't know anything about you.
They aren't – the Avengers – actually going to Wakanda, but rather to some salvage yard on the African coast. That's as much information as Astraea actually gets on the matter; that, and the involvement of someone called Ulysses Klaue. She doesn't have the chance to gather any more information before rushing to the armoury to grab her suit and weapons. If Ultron is here, it's going to get messy quickly. She'd rather not end up becoming victim to an egotistical robot thing-y that wants to destroy this group of people she now calls her friends.
Does he actually consider me on that list? I've only done one official mission so far and only just been officially announced as an Avenger. Surely, I won't be listed as much as a threat as the others to Ultron.
A torrent of thoughts bubble around in Astraea's head, keeping her occupied until they finally land at the salvage yard. This mission is just a little bigger than a HYDRA base. Once you destroy the base, it can't be easily repaired. But Ultron can use the internet to escape, and seemingly has multiple bodies. Just a smidge more complicated.
oOo
Astraea, dressed in her Nemesis suit, is hidden in the shadows of the broken-down ship in the salvage yard that they've managed to pinpoint Ultron to. While Thor, Steve, and Tony act as the main force to distract Ultron, Natasha and Clint are taking down as many of the brigands in the base as possible. Bruce is waiting on the jet – they don't want a code green so close to a city if something were to happen with the Hulk around. The newbie superhero is just waiting and watching, close to the trio of men, ready to spring into action as a hidden advantage if needed.
The group enter the building, signalling for Astraea to stay hidden and out of sight. But that means she can't see an awful lot and can only really listen to what's going on. Thank goodness for super ears.
However, something startles her into a mild panic, bile rising up her throat as she recognises a voice that she never expected to be there. It's that teenager from the Sokovian base, the one who whizzed by in a silver blur and distracted Clint so much he got shot by a blue energy blast.
What the hell is he doing here?
A million questions are bursting forwards in her brain, but the crashes start to happen before she can focus on any of them. There's a murmur across the comms line; it's the prearranged signal word for Astraea to join in the fight – 'crumpets'. It's completely random and bears no link to her at all, aside from the fact that both she and the food are British. But that fits a lot of people, so Astraea figures she's okay.
The scene in front of her, on the other hand, is anything but okay. Thor is swinging his hammer around, Tony is firing blasts, and Steve is using his ultimate Frisbee of destruction. Sonic the Sokovian is zipping around the place, leaving little more than a silver blur behind. There's another person there too – a girl around Astraea's age with free-flowing brown locks and clouds of red energy on her fingertips. It looks like she's able to manipulate the stuff and Astraea resolves to call her Sabrina the mean-age witch, or just Sabrina for short. Sonic and Sabrina seem like one well-tuned duo to Astraea's untrained eyes. Related, maybe?
Astraea rushes into the fray, launching herself at the nearest troop. There's a mixture of human fighters and some new Ultron robots running around. Sonic is collapsed somewhere on the floor, having mistakenly grabbed Thor's hammer, Mjolnir. Sabrina is blasting waves of red energy around the ship. There's a crash as Iron Man and Ultron smash through the ship roof.
A bot lands in front of her, blue eyes glowing. Astraea leaps up and around it, wrapping her arms around its neck and squeezes tightly. Slowly but surely the two sides of the metal neck creak closer together and she pops the head off. The broken body sinks to the ground. Another appears out of nowhere, and she tosses it towards Steve. It grabs his shield, but he manages to flip it around, holding the rim under its neck. Thor smashes the head off with his hammer.
Her muscles ache, and Astraea takes a moment to lean against the metal railings for support. A nervous-sounding Bruce comes over the comms:
"Guys, is this a code green?"
There's answering chatter over the radio, just silence.
A few moments later, Astraea spots the silhouette of Sabrina, moving through the ship. There's a faint tinge of red to the air – she must be using her powers on someone. Astraea's about to step forward to investigate when Thor's voice comes over the radio.
"The girl tried to warp my mind. Take special care, I doubt a human could keep her at bay. Fortunately, I am mighty … " He trails off into silence.
There's doubt nagging at Astraea's mind – if this girl can manipulate minds, what exactly is she capable of doing to them? Forget Ultron, Sabrina might just be their most dangerous enemy yet if she can turn their own minds against them.
A gentle patter of footsteps echoes in Astraea's ears, not too close to her, but near to where Steve is apparently standing. She creeps closer, identifying the light steps of their resident witch. But she's too late. Just as Astraea peeks her head around the corner, the room lights up with that red glow. Sabrina has done her job. Whatever mind games she is playing, Astraea knew they couldn't be anything good for the team. Old memories, darkest fears, warped glimpses of possible futures. The visions could be anything at all, but none of them would be helpful. No, not from this witch. The Avengers' minds are merely playthings for Sabrina, something she can control and use to her advantage.
With two Avengers out of action, Astraea is starting to feel like the odds are starting to stack against them. It was too dangerous for Bruce to unleash the Hulk so close to the city, and she hadn't seen Tony anywhere for at least five minutes. Widow and Hawkeye were somewhere else on the boat, but she hadn't heard from them in a while. She's drowning now, stuck in a sea of impossible choices without anyone to help her out. Unless … unless Astraea seeks out someone more qualified than her. But that would mean leaving Steve and Thor alone in their distracted state. Astraea tilts her head at them as she watches them stand around, motionless with glazed over eyes that shimmer with red. They don't seem to be in any danger, and the plan looks as though it was just to incapacitate them.
Now resolved on a mission, Astraea focuses on the distinctive sounds she associates with Natasha and Clint. The ship isn't too big for her sensitive hearing to pick up on things, and soon enough Astraea detects the tiny buzzing noise of Natasha's special Widow suit, with the blue lines of light standing out against the deep black. Following the noise, she comes across Natasha a few moments later. Her eyes are glazed over with a red light, like with the others.
"Three down, three to go, huh?" Astraea mutters to herself. "Hide and seek with a twist. Hunter and prey."
With Natasha out of action, Astraea only has Clint has an option. Once she finds him they'll … what? Try and get the others to the jet and find Tony, wherever he is. Likely facing off with Ultron somewhere. That would make the most sense. Father and son.
Astraea lets out a low laugh that grows into a giggle, starting to be a bit overwhelmed by everything. They're fighting against a robot that wants to destroy them utterly, a woman who can shut energy balls and control minds, and a man who moves faster than the eye can process. It's ridiculous, and so far away from anything Astraea ever imagined. It's more like something from a comic book rather than real life. The amazing Avengers battle the horrific Ultron to save the world. Doesn't seem that way at the moment.
A low roar, echoing from somewhere far away, jolts Astraea out of her slump. A very familiar roar that shouldn't be sounding at all. The sound of a transforming Bruce, that most people would only hear if they were standing closer. As the sound rolls around her, Clint runs into her view, bow in hand. She rushes up to him, trying to explain everything as fast as she can.
" – Bruce … he's hulking out … must be the girl." Her words come out in stops and starts. "Natasha, Steve, and Thor have all been got by her. They're okay but are just stood staring at … staring at nothing. Whatever she's showing them, it can't be good."
Clint nods, expression stern. "Leave Bruce to Stark, we have to get the others out and back to the jet. Can you find them again?"
She nods, and motions for him to follow. Natasha is nearest and still seems to be in her trance. Clint lifts her up, slinging his bow across his back. Astraea keeps her batons out, ready for anyone else still here. She keeps her eyes and ears focused on the environment around them. The bots seem to have vanished, and all the human troops are either dead or unconscious. The way is pretty much clear back to where Astraea left Steve and Thor. Both of them seem to have come out of their Sabrina-induced visions.
Thor is leaning against the wall, a stormy look on his face. The hammer lay beside him, and tiny thundercracks sounding every few seconds. Whatever Sabrina had made him see, it couldn't have been good. With Natasha now awakened, she and Clint were supporting Thor. It always amazed Astraea how Natasha would hide her problems to focus on the task at hand. The Black Widow had to be feeling all sort of turbulent emotions but she was putting Thor ahead of her needs. Hero indeed.
By the time they reached Steve, the Captain is already looking for them. Astraea frowned at him slightly, noticing the way he is projecting his signature 'stoic leader' thing. He has to be as badly affected as the other two but was apparently hiding it all behind a mask. These people need to sit down and talk, Astraea decided, as soon as we're safe.
oOo
They make it out of the ship, slowly but surely making their way towards the Quinjet. Clint is talking to Tony over the comms. The latter has found Bruce, but Clint has to inform him that half the team are out of action. There's no way Astraea and Clint can keep everyone safe on the jet and fight the Hulk at the same time. It just won't work.
"I'm calling in VERONICA," Tony announces over the comms.
"Uh," Astraea mumbles, popping her head out of the hatch where she was hunting for drinks for the others, "what's VERONICA?"
"Hulk-buster armour." Clint is blunt and to the point. "In case something happened and Bruce lost control. In case … well, in case this – " he gestures to the screens showing footage of Hulk's rampage, " – were to happen."
"Has … has it been tested before?" Astraea questions, eyes glued to the screens.
"Not really many places you can let a green rage monster loose just to test out some armour on him. Too risky, unless you try a deserted desert or something. Which, we don't exactly have around every corner. It worked in simulations, though."
"Great. So, we've got a billionaire fighting a giant green creature, who had his mind warped by a teenage witch, all thanks to a robot who wants to take over the world. As you do." Astraea gave Clint a weak smile. "Just a normal day for you guys, right?"
"Eh … not really, no." Clint scratches the back of his neck with one hand. "It's usually simpler than this."
Astraea just blinks back at him, too stunned by everything to speak. Whoever said being a hero was easy?
oOo
It takes over an hour, but they finally have everyone on board the jet now. Aside from Clint and Astraea, almost everyone else is sleeping (Tony is tinkering with some contraption). They've all had a trying day – both physically and mentally – so a nap is well deserved. Clint is flying them away from the salvage yard but isn't saying where exactly. Astraea's eyelids begin to droop and she moves to the nearest chair to collapse. Maybe a nap isn't such a bad idea.
oOo
A few hours later and Astraea shakes herself awake again. Maria Hill is on a screen on the jet, talking to Tony. Astraea pulls herself into an upright position, looking around the team scattered around the jet. Steve is standing against the side of the jet; Bruce is laying on the floor, wrapped in a blanket; Natasha is sat down, and Thor is standing the middle of the jet. Only Tony seems active, pacing the floor in front of the screen.
"So, run and hide?" Tony looks Maria dead in the eyes.
"Until we can find Ultron, I don't have a lot else to offer." Maria offers a small shrug, an apologetic look in her eyes.
Tony glances around the jet, looking at the scattered members of the team. "Neither do we." He switches on the monitor, and heads over to Clint, who's still in the cockpit. "Hey, you wanna switch out?"
Clint keeps his eyes on the sky, focusing on the instrument in front of him. "Nah, I'm good. If you wanna get some kip, now's a good time, cause we're still a few hours out. Everyone else has already had a little nap."
"A few hours from where?"
"A safe house," Cint states, ever the mysterious spy.
There's got to be something special about this 'safe house' for Clint to be so protective of it. Or maybe he just wants to keep some places private from the others. Living with the people you work with has got to mean there's barely any secrets. Well, unless you're a spy-assassin who knows how to hide things from others, even genius billionaires.
Astraea settles back down on her seat, pulling The Hobbit up on her shiny new Stark Phone, which she stashed in her locker before they headed out to the salvage yard, to read. She figured she'd need a way to talk to Madison and tell her she is safe after the kidnapping incident. Plus, it's a lot better than her old phone, so Astraea now takes it everywhere. With Madison now in mind, Astraea flicks to her messages, texting Madison.
'Hey. Just finished mission. Found out what Wakanda is and kicked some ass. All safe, and going to some safe house. xxx'
The message pings as it gets sent and Astraea receives a reply almost immediately.
'Thank god! ;) I was so, so worried. Don't do that again to me Rhea you idiot. Tell Bruce I hope he's okay and kick some more robot ass for me girl'
'Will do. Stay safe and don't eat all the ice cream. xxx'
'Too late. Muhahahaha'
'you evil bastard. I'll keep my hidden stash of caramel cupcakes from you then and won't bake you any chocolate + banana muffins. Xxx'
'Who's evil now. *pouts* fine, I'll get more ice-cream to share when you come back.'
'more ice-cream is the last thing you deserve right now. :( xxx'
'hehehe'
Astraea puts her phone down, pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on her legs. While she wants to keep Madison safe from the fight, she also wishes beyond anything that she could be here with her sunny smile and fruity laugh. She could make any room brighter just better walking into it. Astraea misses her beyond anything. She's certain that her fear vision from Sabrina would have had something to do with Madison and maybe that dream of hers. Here's hoping the safe house would provide a little space for them to recover and refocus on the fight.
There you have it. A sort of successful mission and an epic battle between the Hulk-buster armour and Hulk. A pair of nicknames for Wanda and Pietro, and some texts from Madison.
I hope you guys enjoyed it. I did switch around the part where Clint tells Tony that the whole team is out of action - that actually happens when they're still the ship. But I decided to change them up and add in some other dialogue.
Anyways, I wrote this while listening to the The Greatest Showman soundtrack. I haven't actually seen the movie but the songs are awesome, so the movie must be too.
Happy reading and writing, guys.
Thanks to everyone who has viewed, followed, reviewed, or favourited this story so far. You are all wonderful people and it warms my heart to know people are reading this humble work of mine.
Until the next time,
Look-for-the-miracles