Hey everyone,
So you remember for those who have been following a while when I skipped a chapter and nobody noticed and then I slid it in there. Yeah, don't worry, I forgot too.
But thanks to Daisy96 for the save, I noticed. Thanks!
So here's the missing chapter, sorry guys. This will make so much more sense now.
And kids, this is what happens when you leave it too long between chapters...you forget lol
Enjoy
xo
Chapter 36
Not Another Bloody Haircut
Steve hurried to help Lex treat the scientist. "Bruce!"
"Don't move him," Tony warned, also moving to check on him.
Bruce reached out with his good arm and grabbed Steve's forearm in desperation. "Did it work?"
Thor looked downtrodden, shaking his head. "Worth a shot. It's over. It's okay," he said in what sounded like his best soothing voice, although it sounded somewhat shaky.
There was silence as they began to work on Bruce, who closed his eyes, his expression filled with pain and agony. Lex looked to Steve, a subdued expression on her face as their eyes locked.
Suddenly, they all heard the sound of a ringtone. While the others treated Bruce, Clint moved to look at his phone as it rang, an awestruck look on his face.
Scott moved to look out a window outside the room as FRIDAY deactivated the lock down protocol. "Guys, I think it worked!"
Clint answered his phone, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. "Honey? Honey?"
Lex turned to look at Clint, stunned as she realized he was talking to his wife. "It worked…" she gaped, watching the sharp-shooter.
Bruce, hearing Lex's whisper of astonishment, opened his eyes, looking up through the hole that was blasted in the ceiling from the gauntlet, his eyes widening, and his hand that now gripped Lex's arm tensing and drawing her attention to him. She looked up too, seeing Thanos' ship and a single missile headed their way.
"WATCH OUT!"
There was an explosion, blasting them all backwards, before more missiles rained down on the compound. Lex was blown away from Bruce and Steve, falling down deeper into the facility and landing into a deep puddle of water heavily enough that she smacked into the concrete foundations of the building.
She coughed and spluttered as she managed to roll over and gain some air back into her lungs. "I'm getting too old for this!"
She sat up, holding her head for a moment to try and urge the ringing in her ears to stop. She looked around, waiting for her eyes to either adjust to the dark or clear of the shell shock from being blasted by what appeared to be air to ground missiles of some sort. Her mouth hurt slightly, no doubt she had collected a few knocks on her way down, and she moved her jaw to make sure it was still intact and operational. She was glad Steve had made her suit up in her Vibranium armour before they had performed the snap, otherwise she might have been a lot worse. She was surrounded by darkness and didn't recognize her surroundings. "Brilliant."
Suddenly, her commslink activated in her ear and she heard muddled voices as various calls for help rang out.
Through the mayhem of chatter she could make out Rhodey's voice. "Mayday, mayday! Does anybody copy? We're in the lower level, it's flooding!"
"What?" came Scott's voice.
"We're drowning! Does anybody copy? Mayday!"
"Guys, can you hear me?" When there was no reply, she realized her comms must have been damaged in either the explosion or the fall. "Shit," Lex muttered, scrambling to her feet and beginning to work her way through the damaged passage in the hopes she might be able to find the others.
As she began to make her way through the passage she found herself in, she heard movement up ahead. She slowed, crouching slightly and her hand moved towards her hip holster.
"Cap?" she recognized the voice. It was Clint.
"Hawkeye," she called back, hurrying towards his voice. Her enhanced eyes spotted him ahead in a small and dull shaft of light. "Are you okay?"
"I've felt better, honestly," he replied. He lifted his hand up to show he held the gauntlet. "Found this though."
"Well, if what I saw was any indication of what's to come, we better keep this thing safe."
"What did you see?" Clint asked, frowning. Suddenly, both of them heard something moving further down the passage and became silent. Lex moved her hand slowly to the pistol grip of her handgun at her hip.
Clint moved his finger to his lips, looking meaningfully at Lex, before slowly moving his hand to his quiver, taking an arrow and knocking it to his bowstring. He fired it further down the passage, and it lit up as it flew down the dark tunnel.
It was full of Alien Outriders.
"Thanos," Lex hissed.
"Damn."
They both turned and ran, the Outriders giving chase with a chorus of snarls and howls. They ducked and weaved, dodging debris, while also firing back at any Outriders that got too close. They continued sprinting, Lex careful to ensure she stayed behind Clint, although he was slower than her, trying to ensure he made it out safely.
"Has anyone ever told you, you run pretty slow, Clint?"
"Look, it's not the first time I've been told that," he retorted between ducking some low hanging debris. Lex turned and fired her handgun at an Outrider that got a little too close for comfort. She loathed that they were in such a small passage, meaning she couldn't activate her Vibranium stave. She sprinted to catch up with Clint again.
"See what you missed out on while you were on house arrest?" Lex called as Clint tossed the gauntlet to her so he could fire an explosive arrow back at their pursuers.
"Yeah, how could I miss all this," he snorted as he released the arrow and an explosion ensued. "Oh crap, gas line."
"God damn it, Clint!"
They skidded to a stop under a large, open shaft leading back to the surface, Lex pulling her retractable Vibranium powered stave from her back and attaching the gauntlet to the magnet in its place. She activated her stave as Clint fired a grappling arrow up the shaft. Both jumped as high as they could, Lex leaping far above Clint and using the Vibranium blades to penetrate the side of the shaft and catch her. She began to scramble up, until Clint's grappling rope activated and began to pull him up through the hole, Clint catching her by the arm as he flew up at great speed.
They were flung into the air, both coming back down heavily as the flames and explosion were expelled through the hole in the ground they had just been deposited out of, the sound of the alien creatures screaming in pain as they were burned alive following quickly behind.
Lex groaned, having landed awkwardly with the gauntlet and her rifle on her back underneath her. "I vote, we never take that ride again."
"Where's your sense of fun?" Clint jeered at her, before he chuckled.
Lex laughed too as she rolled onto her front, pulling the gauntlet from her back and tossing it back to Clint. "I'm going to go and see if I can help Scott with Rhodey, take this and find somewhere to hide."
"Right."
Lex turned and ran, rounding a corner of what was once the Avengers Facility, but was now largely ruin.
"Oh, hey...I know you," she heard Clint say through their commlink. She skidded to a stop, wondering who he had run into.
"Father. I have the stones," came Nebula's voice.
"What?!"
Lex was quick to turn back around, sprinting back to where she had left Clint and the gauntlet. She rounded the corner, to see Clint dodging Nebula's attacks, while still holding the gauntlet. She charged and tackled the alien humanoid roughly, sending her crashing into a pile of debris behind her.
"Run, Clint!"
"Don't need to tell me twice."
Nebula clambered back to her feet, looking back at Lex with disdain and anger. She removed a gold coloured plate from her head, sneering at Lex.
"Wait…you're not OUR Nebula, are you?" Lex asked, realizing that this Nebula held herself differently to the humanoid she was familiar with. She would never give Icy Blue crap about being so tense again, because this Nebula made her look relaxed.
She never answered, instead pulling a knife from her belt and charging at Lex. Lex used her stave to block the attack, moving quickly to the defensive as she tried to gauge the aliens fighting style. Nebula was quick as well as strong, but Lex was too. They were evenly matched.
Lex struck out at Nebula, catching her arm with one of her Vibranium blades, drawing her stave back and causing Nebula to shriek in pain. The alien looked down at her arm, where blue blood began to seep out. Nebula looked back at Lex, her rage evident on her face and causing Lex to grin malevolently. "Oh honey, you have no idea what you're playing with," she teased the alien.
The female super soldier moved to run at her again, but Nebula pulled out a blaster, shooting at Lex. The Super Soldier was able to dive sideways just in time, but the blast caught her on the side of the neck leaving her with a burning sensation, and she felt some of her plait fall away as she skidded to the ground.
Nebula grinned maliciously. "I will get that gauntlet for my father." She stepped forwards, her blaster aimed at Lex's face. "You can stand between me all you like, but nothing and no one will stop me." The Super Soldier grit her teeth, her hand itching to reach for her own handgun.
There was the sound of running footsteps from behind Lex, and one set, she recognized.
"Stop!" came an unfamiliar female voice.
Nebula looked up at the newcomer, her eyes widening in shock, before a new emotion settled there. Betrayal. "You're betraying us?"
"You don't have to do this," came Nebula's voice from behind Lex. The Nebula she knew. The one that had recognized the insanity of her father and was now working to fix those mistakes.
The Nebula before her narrowed her eyes, looking from the two women behind her, back down to Lex. "I am... this."
"No, you're not," the other voice implored.
Lex narrowed her eyes at the Nebula in front of her, analyzing the situation. Her neck still stung, but other than that, she was uninjured. She just needed to make sure she read the situation right.
"You've seen what we become," 2023 Nebula said calmly. Lex was confused by what the alien was talking about, but she focused on paying attention to the situation and waiting for the right moment to take her chance.
"Nebula, listen to her."
"You can change."
The Nebula in front of Lex became emotional, a desperation entering her voice. Lex narrowed her eyes, tensing her muscles as she prepared to move. "He won't let me."
Lex saw the tick of Nebula's muscles within seconds of her last words as she began to move her aim from Lex to someone behind her, causing Lex to draw her own handgun, aiming it at her.
"No!" the unfamiliar voice shouted behind her. She pulled the trigger, her shot true, hitting Nebula in the chest, at the same time as a blast hit the alien. Nebula fell to the ground, unmoving. Lex scrambled to her feet and looked behind her, seeing the Nebula she was familiar with minus a gold plate on her head, her blaster raised and pointed at the now dead Nebula with a look of grim determination on her face. She was standing next to what appeared to be an alien woman with magenta coloured hair and green skin.
"What the hell happened, blue?"
"It's a long story," Nebula replied quietly, lowering her aim.
They heard a resounding crash from somewhere in the vicinity of the facility causing them to look around.
"What's going on? Why is Thanos here?" Lex asked, looking back at Nebula expectantly. Obviously she knew what was going on.
"Nebula, our Nebula, brought us here, through your machine. And Thanos wants to get the stones and this time he wants to destroy the planet," the other woman answered, looking away from the now dead Nebula to Lex.
Lex sighed, replacing her handgun. "Just once, I would like things to just go our way without any complications," she groaned as she reached back to inspect her hair. Sure enough, the end had been blasted off, leaving her with a much shorter ponytail. She pressed her lips into a thin line, thoroughly annoyed. "Not another bloody haircut."
"Lex!" came a call through her commslink, it was Clint. Nebula must have heard it too, because she looked alarmed at the urgency in Clint's voice. "I could really use some help right now."
Lex exchanged a look with Nebula and the other woman, before they all turned and ran in the direction Clint had taken off.
They ran through the debris, dodging Outriders as they tried to find Clint. Lex could hear him panting through their commslink, but couldn't get a fix on his location through the debris and rubble. Everything was decimated.
Nebula and her 'sister' were a few steps behind Lex, also watching for any signs of the sharp-shooter.
"We should split up, we might have a better chance of finding Clint," Lex barked back, glancing over her shoulder. "You two stay together, watch each other's back, got it?"
They both nodded in unison, before peeling off and running down through a gap in the debris, shooting back at some of the Outriders who were pursuing them.
Lex leapt over a large mound of rubble, tucking and rolling onto her feet, before turning and firing at the Outriders that had continued to chase her. As she fired, she heard the sound of metal striking metal and what sounded like lightning and thunder coming from somewhere to her direct right.
She turned and ran again, having put the faster of the Outriders down, looking for the source of the sounds. Sure enough, she soon came across Iron Man, Captain America and Thor, taking on the cause of all their current problems. Thanos.
"Okay, Thor. Hit me," Tony called to the Asgardian. Thor leapt into the air, before bringing his hammer and axe together while streaming lightning through the two. Iron Man's suit began to absorb the energy, before shooting it through his hand cannons and the main power source of the armour in his chest. Thanos barely even reacted to the blasts, rushing towards Tony and grabbing him roughly, punching him several time and causing the blasts to stop.
Thor rushed Thanos with his axe and hammer, but Thanos turned, using Iron Man as a shield from the assault.
Lex skid to a stop, before turning and running at Thanos. She replaced her handgun and quickly took her stave from her back, flicking her wrist and causing the stave to extend to its full size, the blue Vibranium blades glowing as she sprinted towards the fight.
Before she could reach Thanos, Outriders charged at her. She stopped, beginning to fight them off furiously.
"Lex! Get to Clint, get the stones out of here!" Steve shouted as he picked himself up from where Thanos had just thrown him, seeing her as she cut down several Outriders and Chitauri.
"I can help!" She fought off the last few Outriders to attack her and moved closer to Steve. He stood up, half his shield was destroyed, the Vibranium completely shorn in half.
Steve moved in front of her with a severe expression on his face, stopping her from advancing towards Thanos by grabbing her shoulder. "We need to save everyone now, don't worry about us, help Clint, keep the stones safe," Steve warned, as he wiped blood that was dripping from his mouth. Lex looked defiantly at Steve, the urge to argue strong. His expression softened. "Please, Lex."
She eyed him in annoyance and bit her lip, glancing past Steve at the Mad Titan who was in the process of knocking Iron Man to the ground before turning on Thor.
"Fine." She looked back to Steve. "I'll be back, and you better still be alive when I get back."
Steve gave a small smile. "Count on it." She turned and ran, well aware of Steve's gaze still on her.
Lex ducked as an Outrider lunged at her, still looking for Clint. She slashed at the alien, slicing through its two front legs, causing it to collapse to the ground before plunging the Vibranium blades through the alien's head.
"Annoying." She looked around, frowning as she tried to figure out what part of the Avenger compound she was currently in. "Where the hell are you Clint?" she muttered to no one in particular.
"Right here!" he shouted as he appeared around a pile of debris, sprinting towards her.
"Oh…" she replied in surprise as he grabbed her arm and continued running. "Wait…"
"No wait, run!" he motioned behind him, where a huge wave of aliens were charging after him.
"Oh, shit!" She grabbed his arm and ran a bit faster, towing him along at her speed. "Hurry up."
"Here, take this and go, you're faster than me. I'll hold them off," he said, pushing the gauntlet towards her.
"Uh uh, no way, you won't stand a chance against these things, especially that many of them."
"No, he won't, but we might be able to help," came Nebula's voice. They both looked ahead, seeing Nebula and her sister appear from around a leftover corner of the building. They both began firing with blasters into the aliens in pursuit behind the pair.
I even got out of bed earlier than I needed to, so I could pump this one out once I found it.
Sorry guys, and thanks Daisy96 for alerting me to that
xo
A very tired Krayzee