Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Days turned into weeks. Almost a month, really. During which time Clint had done everything possible to prepare himself for the fight that laid ahead. Every day he spent in the training room, doing target practice or old SHIELD drills to get him back into shape and ready to do what needed to be done. Two years on house arrest made him less alert and aware of his surroundings. He never felt like he had to worry about something happening at the farm with his family. Maybe he should have. Maybe if he had been more aware of what was happening in the world and Thanos' arrival, maybe Clint would have been able to help stop him and save his family. It was this guilt that was his driving force to do whatever it took to bring them back.
The raccoon, Rocket, was still monitoring for Thanos sightings in the galaxy but nothing had happened. Yet, at least. "Or maybe it did but I missed it because this stupid technology here Is useless. Seriously, how do you idiots manage to know anything that could be coming to invade your planet?" Under different circumstances Clint might have found the humor in this thing and might have enjoyed the weird alien raccoon's company a bit more, but for now he had an itchy trigger finger and he needed to bring this nightmare to an end. And Natasha didn't seem to be of much help either. Whenever he approached her about the subject, he would always get the same answer: "Nothing yet but we're not giving up."
Of course that did little to appease him. He couldn't recall the last time he got a good night's sleep. Each time he closed his eyes all he could see was his family begging him to save them. They would call to him and he would try to run to them but before he could reach them they would always fade away. And it wasn't just his family that haunted him. Lost teammates would appear as well. Wanda. Sam. Scott. Vision. Tony. All of his friends. All lost to the Blip. And maybe it was stupid but he blamed himself. He should have been there. Wakanda. Wherever Tony was. Somewhere fighting alongside his friends to try and stop this mad titan from decimating half of the world's population. Maybe his presence would have changed nothing, but maybe it could have. He should have been there no matter what, but he wasn't. Families had been torn apart. Loved one's lost. And what had he done to try and stop it? Nothing.
The guilt and lack of sleep ate away at him and Clint found he couldn't stand around the compound any longer. He couldn't take the looks and the reminders of those they had lost. Natasha had been working up a manifest of everyone who was missing, their faces appearing on the holographic screen and every time he caught a glimpse he felt like their eyes were boring holes into him. Blaming him. He needed out. He needed to try and at least do something to help those who were left behind. Clint didn't know how, but he had to try. So without telling anyone he got onto his bike and headed into the city. Maybe it was overkill to have his equipment with him, but it was better to be safe than sorry. He didn't know what waited for him in New York or what trouble he might find, but he had to go. What kind of Avenger would he be if he just sat around and did nothing to help those who needed help?
When he arrived in the city, he hardly recognized it. It looked like a nuclear bomb had just gone off. Cars were wrecked and abandoned in the streets, forcing Clint to have to weave and make random turns just to get around them. Buildings were destroyed or ransacked everywhere. Looters, no doubt. It even looked like some people had turned old convenience stores and restaurants into homes. The lost faces of kids who were alone stared out at him as he drove by, essentially stabbing a knife into his heart. How many kids had lost their parents because they had failed? How many other families had been tragically taken from one another? It was a sight that weighed heavily on him. Clint could recall the destruction after the Chitauri invasion all those years ago and even that didn't look half as bad as what he saw now. This was all their fault. They should have done something more. They should have stopped Thanos. And he could see it in the faces of those he passed as they looked out at him. It was a familiar look that he saw every morning when he went into the bathroom and saw his own reflection in the mirror.
Despair.
Clint was about to turn down another road to see if he could find anything or anyone who may have needed help when a woman came running out in front of him, screaming for help. He quickly braked and turned his bike to skid to a halt, thankfully stopping before he could hit her. "Please, please, you have to help me!" she wailed as she clawed at his sleeve.
"What happened?"
"It's my daughter, Angela. They took her. They took my baby…"
"Who took her?"
"The Diamondbacks. Ever since the Blip they've been going around town and kidnapping young girls for who knows what. She's only fifteen! Please, you have to help me get her back. She's the only family I have left!" From her pocket she pulled out a picture of a girl. Dark brown hair. Happy green eyes. Standing next to probably her younger brother in front of the Statue of Liberty. As he stared at the picture he clenched his jaw. She reminded him of Lila. A young girl who had just lost her brother and surviving with her mother. Taken by a group of sickos who probably had less than desirable ideas in mind for the girls they took. He could feel how his anger swelled inside him. How was it that families had been torn apart and good people were gone, yet scum of the Earth had been left behind to continue to torment the victims?
He took the picture and nodded. "I'll bring her home, I promise," he said, trying to keep his voice steady as he tucked the picture into his pocket. The woman thanked him over and over but he barely heard it. He had a target now.
A few blocks away was an old safehouse he used. He didn't know if it was still in one piece or if someone had ransacked it, but he needed a link to FRIDAY. Thankfully, when he arrived, it looked fairly untouched. People had tried to break the lock, sure, but were unsuccessful. Good old Stark Tech. He pulled open the laptop and logged into the system. "Greetings Barton….you're a fair bit away from the compound. What are you doing in New York?"
"I need you to find me everything you can on the Diamondbacks here. Especially any known locations of hangouts. And also run facial recognition on the girl on this photo. See if any traffic cameras might have caught a glimpse of her recently."
"Can I ask what this is for?"
"I'm just trying to do something good."
"Ms. Romanoff has been looking for you. Should I let her know where you are?"
"I'd rather you didn't."
Knowing Tony and how his tech operated, he knew that there was a good chance that once FRIDAY gave him the information that she would transfer the information directly to Natasha. Why couldn't Tony just recreate JARVIS? "Security cameras picked up an image of the girl in the photo at the docks, along with known members of the Diamondbacks. Records also indicate that the docks are used as a hideout for the gang, as well as a storage unit for illegal weapons. I would highly suggest alerting…"
"Thanks FRIDAY," he interrupted, logging out of the system and getting back onto his bike.
He had work to do.
TBC…