Holy -!
This story already has more reviews, follows, and favorites than most, if not all, of my other stories! Wow! Thanks, everyone! I hope my writing is good enough to please you all! I'll try to release at least one chapter a week!
Ultron reached the town in less than four minutes. He had been expecting to reach it in less time than it took; he would have to remember to make some upgrades when he got back to the tower. But right now, he had to focus on the bystanders who would get hurt by HYDRA.
As if on cue, he heard a female voice crying for help. It was slightly muffled, as if there was a barrier of some sort between her and him. Using his optics, he zoomed in on the direction the noise was coming from, and it took only a few moments to discover the cause: a house had collapsed. He could detect two heat signatures inside.
He landed on the ground, the snow somewhat canceling out any noise he would have made. He paused, realizing that he couldn't just attempt to lift up the house all willy-nilly; moving the wrong thing could cause the whole structure to come crumbling down around the people inside.
Ultron quickly used his scanners to detect the easiest route he should take. Mentally, he noted that it was somewhat similar to the game of Jenga, not that he had ever played it. Maybe he would ask his father to play a game with him later.
The route set in place, Ultron began to cautiously and painstakingly remove various pieces of wood, steel, and debris. Before long, he could see a woman stuck underneath a wooden pillar. Not sure if he could remove it safely, Ultron lifted his forearm, where a small heat ray opened up, cutting away small pieces of the object. The beam was small enough to be handy for precision work, much like a laser in surgery.
As soon as the object was small enough to not cause much damage should it happen to fall on the injured lady, Ultron carefully lifted it, before tossing it into the distance. As he leaned down towards her, she did something he hadn't expected: she screamed.
If he had more of a face, he might have winced at the high-pitched noise. It was almost too loud for his audio receptors. Still, he supposed he couldn't blame her for being startled. Choosing to ignore her for now, Ultron shifted through more of the rubble to find her husband, who was unconscious.
Another piece of programming that Tony had installed in Ultron was the ability to check a person's vitals and body composition, a handy power for someone tasked with helping people. Using the ability now, Ultron could tell that the man wasn't dead, but he did have a nasty concussion. The lady, on the other hand, had suffered multiple broken bones.
Grabbing both humans under each arm, Ultron used his built-in GPS to locate the nearest hospital, where he would drop off the two before going off to find more people who might need his help. Unfortunately, the woman would not stop her panicked shouts.
"Please, cut that out. I don't mean you any harm, obviously. Do you want me to drop you?" None of his words seemed to reach the stubborn lady, so he finally decided to simply mute any noise from his audio receptors. He sighed in relief at the sudden quiet. As soon as he reached the hospital (helpfully sporting giant red cross), a nurse came running out to greet him, her eyes widening at the sight of him.
"This woman needs immediate attention; an X-ray will be helpful. The man is suffering from a concussion to the head. Check for internal bleeding." Not wasting any time, he flew off back towards the village, hoping that the next people he found wouldn't be quite as nervous around him.
The Avengers had been making short work of the HYDRA losers, Tony was happy to see. The team had been working at 110%, like a well-oiled fighting machine. Thanks to Natasha and her strange but useful Russian "lullaby", even the Hulk posed no internal danger.
Cap and Thor had also managed to perfect a combo attack. It was discovered accidentally, but after that, the two just had to try it out every single battle they were in.
"This is almost too easy." Not that Tony was complaining. Actually, this would look good for his image. Where were the darn paparazzi when you actually wanted them around?
"Maybe so, but don't let your guard down. You never know what could happen next," Steve scolded like the boyscout he was. He really needed to learn to lighten up.
"Cap! C'mon, live a little! When this is over, I need to help you get a girlfriend," Tony offered his friend. The com-link in his helmet buzzed with Natasha's scoff.
"Good luck. I've tried, but Steve here seems determined to remain solo." A zapping noise could be heard next. Tony felt sorry for the guy who received a "Widow's Bite" to the face.
"Rogers, Stark is right! Having a woman in your life is a positive thing! Sometimes it is the very motivation you need to keep on fighting!" Thor's loud voice made Tony lower the volume a bit on the com-link system.
"What about you, Clint? Got anyone special," Steve asked, rapidly changing the subject. Clint coughed.
"Oh, you know. I dabble a bit here and there." It was an incredible vague answer, but Tony didn't think much of it. A man deserved to have a few secrets. He was a secret agent, after all.
"OK, I think we're just about done – arghh!" The pained cry came from Steve. Tony called out Steve's name, but only got a groan in response.
"I'm on my way," Tony made sure to let his teammates know as he set his boosters on maximum. He didn't know who could get the drop on Cap, but whoever it was would pay. As soon as Cap's body became viewable on his HUD, Tony breathed a sigh of relief; Steve was breathing. But why would a HYDRA agent spare him?
He didn't have time to think dwell on it before he felt himself get shot out of the sky, and through two trees, and not the thin kind. As he fought to regain his bearings, something barreled into him, sending him sprawling on the ground. As he fought to get up, he was hit again. This was repeated a couple more times, until Tony got annoyed and used his repulsors to blast whatever was mocking him.
"JARVIS, what's going on?" There was a pause before his AI acknowledged the question.
"Sir, the sensors are picking up a human energy signature. However, this human seems to be moving as fast as a speeding train." It was mid-way during the explanation that something slammed into Iron Man again. This time, however, he was ready for it, but even then, all he saw was a blue blur.
"Either Sonic the Hedgehog is real, or I'm fighting someone who can actually run faster than my HUD can keep track of." Either way, it was a frightening prospect. He wanted to jet into the air to collect his wits, but he had already been shot down once.
As if JARVIS read his mind, the AI added, "The energy blast that knocked you down does not appear to have originated from your speedy adversary." Tony wasn't sure if that was good or bad news. On one hand, that meant they had at least two powered opponents to deal with. On the other, flying would be safe as long as he avoided any more hits.
Deciding to take the chance, Iron Man flew above the trees, hoping that a bird's eye view would help him locate whoever had been messing with him. What he saw was absurd, but not surprising: a blue dot running around the forest fast enough to leave a trailing blue light behind him.
Thank goodness he had a lock-on feature. Even against someone as fast as that, his small missiles would have no problem chasing him around. Before he could fire, JARVIS gave him a sharp warning regarding a weird energy signature coming at him. Cursing, Tony managed to angle himself so that the red-colored bolt missed him.
"Guys, I could really use some backup like ten minutes ago!" Fortunately, he received response from Black Widow and Thor.
"I'm pretty close, and I stole one guy's motorcycle, so I'll be there in a few minutes." Natasha's voice rumbled slightly, an effect of talking while driving a fast vehicle over very un-solid ground.
"Friend Stark, I will also be there shortly," Thor announced. As much as Tony hated to do it, he had to down-vote that decision.
"Thor, I wish you could, but we need you to take down all the missile launchers and cannons that HYDRA has around the area. If they're not taken out, they can use those weapons to level the nearby towns." Thor grunted, before reluctantly wishing his teammates luck.
As soon as Tony put his attention back on his current situation, it hit him: no one had tried to attack him while he was on the com-link. Had they somehow overheard, and dashed off because they didn't want to mess with more than one adversary?
He cautiously landed back on the cold ground, absently wondering if perhaps they had gone to protect the weapons that he'd ordered Thor to light up. He wasn't prepared forma anyone to grab his helmet and yank it off.
"Squinting his eyes at the sudden burst of sunlight (the glaring white snow everywhere didn't help), Tony saw his helmet in the hands of a boy who couldn't be any older than his late 20s. His hair was so white that it was almost mistaken for snow.
"Well, well. Mr. Stark, we finally meet. Well, we already met, but I don't think you could see me." The accent was strong, but it was the words that registered most.
"You're the guy who was practicing track & field around me? I don't even know you, and you don't look like a HYDRA lapdog. What do you want?" He didn't like the angry glint the youth got in his eye.
"What I want is for justice to be done. Mr. Stark, I want you dead." With a cocky grin, the snow-head dashed at Tony – only to jump back when an arrow struck near his legs. Tony sighed in relief; the cavalry had arrived.
"I can't let you kill him; who else would pay for all the equipment I use?" Clint fired off a few more arrows, testing the speed of his opponent. It was a test easily conquered, as all three arrows were plucked out of thin air as effortlessly as someone grabbing a slow-moving turtle.
"You'll have to be a bit faster," the overconfident speedster said before slamming his fist into Clint's face. The archer went down, his body motionless in the snow.
"Hands off!" Tony raised his arms and fired a repulsor blast, but it was intercepted by the same red energy burst that knocked him out of the sky. A young woman stepped out from behind the trees, her red jacket and black boots standing out from the white backdrop.
"Pietro, you should really learn to watch your back. Your speed doesn't make you invincible," she chided as if scolding an impulsive sibling. Pietro rubbed his head sheepishly.
"Wanda, you worry too much. But I'll say thanks anyway." Half-hearted apology aside, the two siblings turned to face Tony. Fortunately for him, he could hear a tell-tale rustle in the branches above his head, noises which went unnoticed by the two opponents in front of him.
A sparking baton dropped down on Pietro's shoulder, momentarily stunning him. His partner quickly fired off a blast, destroying the tops of several trees. Natasha could be seen just barely dodging as she jumped from branch to branch.
"Please tell me you brought Banner," Tony muttered into his com-link. After a brief pause that really said it all, he heard Widow exhale in frustration.
"Unfortunately, by the time we got your call for help, I had already used the lullaby on him. We're on our own, and for all we know, those kids aren't alone." Tony hated how Natasha could be so darn straight-to-the-point.
"I think we need some help."
Ultron had spent the last hour flying in a circle over town, swooping up anyone who needed help or simply had no way to access the hospital. It was a thankless job, as he soon learned. He had kept himself entertained by flicking between channels in his built-in radio.
As he was enjoying a song about a "Mr. Roboto", his com-frequency began to crackle, before briefly relaying a message from his creator, about how he needed help. He was in trouble.
Deciding that he had done all the work he could in the village, Ultron fired off like a rocket back to the forest.
"Mr. Stark didn't wish for you to join the battle. He didn't think you were ready yet." Ultron almost crashed when he heard the robotic voice.
"JARVIS? I didn't realize that you were in my head. That's kind of creepy…" He wasn't sure he liked the idea of having voices in his head. Isn't that what made some humans crazy?
"All of Mr. Stark's creations are linked by me, so yes, I will be able to communicate with you and keep track of you. However, I am not able to read your mind, if that is what concerns you." Ultron had not in fact been thinking of that possibility, but now he couldn't help but do just that.
"Good. My thoughts are private, you now. Some of the stuff in my head would make you blush, anyway." He was joking, but from the gasp, JARVIS didn't know that. "Anyway, father is in trouble. If I save his team, he'll have to let me go on future missions. He also might give me an allowance, so it's a win-win situation."
"If you say so." JARVIS, Ultron realized, was what his father referred to as a stiff.
As soon as he got within range, his scanners picked up two humans not listed in his databanks. Obviously, they were the enemy. As he landed, he made sure to slam a fist into the ground, like he had seen his father do in videos.
"Ultron?" Tony was on the ground, his back being stepped on by a silver-haired stranger. Ultron pointed his palm at him threateningly.
"Get off him and surrender. If you do, I won't be too harsh on you. I mean, you have the right to remain silent." He paused; that didn't sound right. Oh, the police were supposed to say that! Unfortunately, those few seconds of thought were enough time for the boy to suddenly appear behind the robot and deliver a punch to his head.
Normally, a punch from a human would do nothing to one of Tony's suits, but the punch was strengthened by the speed and momentum of the blow. Ultron's vision briefly sputtered out, the blow to the head almost short-circuiting him. But every time he attempted to bring his optics back online, he would be struck again and again.
"Cut that out! Seriously, stop. You're not even giving me a chance here!" Frustrated, he attempted to strangle the kid without his sight, but was only able to grasp air before bumping his head against a tree. As he backpedaled, he was kicked against the tree again.
"Are you supposed to be the backup?" The boy sounded incredulous. Ultron could sense the heat-signature of the boy's partner suddenly flare up, as she prepared to emit a very high-temperature attack, one that could very well melt the very steel of his frame!
A loud whirring noise caught everyone attention, and the female let her attack dissipate as she looked up. Ultron's eyes finally recharged, and he looked up in time to see the US army fly in, with at least a dozen choppers surrounding the area.
"On the ground, now!" someone of no-doubt high authority called out through the speakers. The boy merely flipped the birdie before grabbing his partner and dashing off. As Tony and Natasha shakily stood up, Ultron hid his head in his hands, something like shame filling his circuits. As far as first missions went, that must have been one for the books.
Author's Notes:
Yeah, pretty embarrassing first mission. Ultron didn't see that coming. *gets booed*