The Avengers Assemble
Chapter 9: The Avengers Assemble
High above, Tony flew towards the Leviathan and fired a round of miniature missiles at it. The massive creature roared, tail swiping against a building and sending pieces of debris falling to the ground.
“Well, we got its attention.” Tony said, though it was obvious he wasn’t speaking to anyone in particular over the comms. “What the hell was step two?”
“Step two was Phoenix kicking your ass if you got killed.” Clint said helpfully, not pausing his fight against a group of warriors.
Evelyn threw a series of fireballs at the warriors that were converging on the assassins, flying towards them as Steve ran along the cars beneath her.
“Thanks!” Natasha called, using the Chitauri warrior’s own weapon against them after she had disarmed one of them. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay.” Evelyn replied, landing lightly next to the other redhead and tossing a fireball at a warrior. “The twins have been kicking non-stop and I’ve still been getting the Braxton-Hicks contractions.”
“Ouch.” Clint muttered, wincing sympathetically.
A current of lightning shot down from the sky, branching out and striking several warriors simultaneously. The warriors seized up and fell over, either knocked out or dead as Thor landed on his knee in front of the heroes.
“What’s the story upstairs?” Steve asked as Thor pushed himself to his feet using a nearby car.
“Is there any way to pierce through the barrier surrounding the Cube?” Evelyn asked, moving towards the Thunder God and the Captain. “JARVIS said it was unbreachable.”
“No.” Thor replied. “It remains so.”
“Eves and Thor are right.” Tony called over the comms, zooming passed them with several flyers on his tail. “We gotta deal with these guys.”
“How do we do this?” Natasha asked.
“As a team.” Evelyn said.
“I have unfinished business with Loki.” Thor said.
“Yeah? Well, get in line.” Clint retorted, collecting his arrows and keeping the still usable ones while tossing the ones that weren’t.
“I owe him a smack.” Evelyn remarked. “And before you ask, it is not my hormones talking this time. I think.”
“Save it, you guys.” Steve said firmly, ending the forming bickering match before it could start. “Loki’s going to keep this fight focused on us, and that’s what we need. Without him, these things could run wild.” He turned around to face the group. “We got Stark up top. He’s going to need us to…” He trailed off as the sound of an engine rumbling reached them.
The five of them looked to see Bruce driving up on a motorcycle, a helmet on his head. He cut the engine and climbed off the bike, walking towards the group.
“Bruce!” Evelyn cried happily, a bright smile on her face.
“So, this all seems horrible.” The mild-mannered scientist commented as they met in the middle.
“I’ve seen worse.” Natasha commented, looking at him.
“Same.” Steve and Evelyn said in unison.
“As have I.” Thor added.
“Sorry.” Bruce apologized sheepishly.
“No, we could use with a little worse.” Natasha told Bruce.
“Tony, Bruce is here.” Evelyn said into her comm.
“Just like you both said.” Steve remarked impressed.
“Then tell him to suit up.” Tony ordered. “I’m bringing the party to you.”
Less than a second later, he flew around the corner and headed straight for them, the Leviathan on his tail. The massive creature swiped the corner of the building as it made the turn, sending debris, dust and glass everywhere.
“I-I don’t see how that’s a party.” Natasha said, shaking her head and looking at the incoming beast.
Tony led it closer to the ground and towards the waiting group, the Leviathan crashing through the idle and abandoned cars.
“Bruce?” Evelyn asked, seeing him walk forward. “Now might be a really good time to get angry.”
“That’s my secret, Evy.” Bruce said over his shoulder with a depreciative smile. “I’m always angry.”
With a low roar, he began to morph, his body growing in size, causing his clothes to become torn and leaving him only wearing a pair of trousers cut-off at the knees and his skin turned completely green.
Curling his hand into a fist, he delivered a mighty punch to the Leviathan when it reached him. The force of the blow combined with the creature’s own momentum pushed Bruce back several feet until he was able to stop directly in front of the assembled team.
“Hold on!” Tony called, firing a small, anti-armor missile from his gauntlet as the back end of the Leviathan flew upwards, arching through the air and curving over the group.
At the same time, Evelyn flew up and formed a massive fireball in her hands that was several inches in diameter before throwing it at the Leviathan as well.
Both attacks hit the mark in quick succession, causing it a series of explosions along its underbelly and sides. Tony pulled Evelyn back and covered her protectively with his body while Steve curled around Natasha with his shield protecting them and Clint ducked behind an overturned van. Thor and Hulk, both largely unaffected by the explosion, merely leaned away from the heat while shifting so that they were between the burning flames and their teammates.
The Leviathan groaned low as it fell over the side of the bridge and onto the street below, twitching for a second before falling completely still. Several warriors that lined the walls of the surrounding buildings roared angrily, Hulk roaring back as Tony and Evelyn lowered down to the ground and filled in the ranks.
The team stood back-to-back in a wide circle, Evelyn forming a fireball in each hand while Clint notched his bow, Thor raised his hammer and Natasha reloaded her guns with fresh clips.
The Avengers had Assembled, and they were ready.
From the still open portal, dozens of Leviathans and hundreds of chariot flyers emerged, making their way down into the city below.
“Guys.” Natasha said nervously.
“Call it, Eves, Captain.” Tony said.
“Steve, it’s your call.” Evelyn said, looking at her former partner.
“All right, listen up.” Steve said firmly, taking the cue. “Until we can close that portal, our priority is containment. Barton, I want you on that roof.” He pointed to the roof in question. “Eyes on everything. Call out patterns and strays. Tony, you got the perimeter. Anything gets over three blocks out, turn it back or turn it to ash.”
“Can you give me a lift?” Clint asked Tony.
“Right.” Tony said, nodding. “Eves, be careful.” He said, lifting his visor and looking at his sister.
“You, too.” Evelyn replied. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” He replied with a small smile before lowering his visor once more. He stepped towards Clint and grabbed the back of the archer’s suit. “Better clench up, Legolas.”
“Wha-?” Clint started to ask before ending with a scream as Tony fired his thrusters and shot into the air.
“Thor.” Steve continued, drawing the remainder of the team’s attention. “You gotta try and bottleneck that portal. Slow ‘em down. You got the lightning. Light the bastards up.” Thor nodded and with a final glance at Evelyn, he swung Mjolnir and launched himself into the air. “Evy, Nat, the two of you and me, we stay here. Nat, you and I are on the ground and Evy, you alternate between being with us and just above. We keep the fighting here.” The two redheads nodded in understanding, Evelyn lifting herself up and hovering a few feet off the ground. “And Hulk…” The green giant turned to the Captain. “Smash.” Steve ordered.
Hulk grinned and leapt into the air, a roar echoing in his wake. Orders given and being carried out, Steve, Natasha and Evelyn joined the fray as Chitauri warriors ran towards them.
Minutes passed as the team fought across Manhattan, doing everything they could to stem the seemingly never-ending tide of invaders. Thor stood on the mast of the Empire State Building and summoned a concentrated current of lightning through his hammer before directing it straight at the portal, the currents dancing along the building at the same time. The stream of lightning also destroyed a Leviathan, the resulting explosions setting off a chain reaction that destroyed dozens of flyers and a few more Leviathans. Hulk tossed around each of the warriors he came across like ragdolls while brushing off their weapons fire as though they were flies. From his designated rooftop perch, Clint fired arrow after arrow at the flyers that passed him, calling out warnings to the rest of the team whenever the need arose. Tony flew through the streets, firing his weapons at the warriors and flyers rapidly, blowing them up as he shot passed them.
As the trio on the ground fought off the warriors that surrounded them, Natasha grabbed one of the Chitauri guns and used it to fire a lethal blast at several warriors in conjunction with Evelyn’s fireballs. Hearing a sound behind them, the two redheads spun around, gun and fireball at the ready. They both relaxed slightly when they saw Steve rejoin them after he had been swept several feet away.
“You okay?” Steve asked, noticing that both women were panting and also sported a few new bruises.
“Yeah.” Natasha replied, nodding and breathing heavily.
“Yeah, we’re okay.” Evelyn replied as well, breathing just as heavily as Natasha and bringing her hand to her lower back with a wince. “But all our efforts won’t mean a thing if that portal stays open.”
“Our biggest guns couldn’t touch it.” Steve told them.
“Maybe it’s not about guns.” Natasha suggested.
“If you want to get up there, you’re gonna need a ride.” Steve said, realizing what the redheaded assassin was saying.
“I got a ride.” Natasha said, walking to the opposite side of the bridge. “I could use a boost, though.”
Steve moved several paces back until he was directly in front of the bridge railing, Natasha across from him. “You sure about this?” He asked as Evelyn moved back several feet as well so that the three of them formed a triangle of sorts.
“Yeah. It’s gonna be fun.” Natasha replied.
“You don’t sound very convincing.” Evelyn pointed out.
Natasha didn’t reply, instead running head on towards Steve. She jumped up and, using the idle car nearby as a booster, bounced off of the Captain’s shield as Evelyn gathered the air currents beneath the assassin’s feet and propelled her higher up. Natasha grabbed onto the underside of a chariot flyer as it passed and was soon out of sight.
“When did this become our lives?” Steve wondered aloud.
“Honestly, I stopped asking myself that question around the time we took out the HYDRA bases throughout Europe in ‘44.” Evelyn admitted, shaking her head. A Leviathan passed over them, Hulk on its back and fighting off several warriors. “Having fun?” Evelyn called, throwing a fireball at an approaching warrior on the ground.
“Hulk smash!” Hulk roared happily, grabbing a pair of warriors in his large hand, rocking them like ragdolls before tossing them over the side and onto the street below. The warriors hit the paved ground and didn’t get back up.
“Go help him, Evy. I’ll be fine.” Steve said, flinging his shield like a frisbee and knocking several approaching warriors out.
Evelyn nodded and flew up, landing lightly on the Leviathan’s back and firing several fireballs in quick succession at the warriors.
“Pretty Bird, careful.” Hulk said. “Pretty Bird carry babies, carry Little Gods.”
“I have you, Hulk.” Evelyn said simply, smiling up at the green giant while waving her hands and causing a wave of air to blow several warriors off the Leviathan. “You’ll watch my back and protect the babies.”
“Hulk protect Little Gods.” Hulk declared, punching a warrior and knocking it over the side.
Thor landed next to them on the Leviathan, using his hammer to knock the warriors back just as Hulk tore off a piece of the spinal fin and embedded it into the hull.
“How do you fare?” The Thunder God asked, looking at Evelyn while firing a bolt of lightning at a few of the warriors.
“I’m as big as a house, look like I swallowed a planet, working up towards exhausted, still having Braxton-Hicks contractions, your babies are kicking me non-stop and these things are still pissing me off!” Evelyn ended her statement with a furious yell, spinning on the balls of her bare feet and blasting a wave of air that knocked the remaining warriors off the Leviathan. She turned and looked back at Thor. “Other than that, I am very well.” She said cheerfully, smiling brightly.
"Pretty Bird scary." Hulk commented, tossing the warriors he had been swinging around over the side.
“Indeed. You are a very frightening woman.” Thor agreed, staring at her in amazement.
Evelyn just smiled sweetly. Thor shook his head and spun on his feet, swinging his hammer down on the piece of spinal fin that Hulk had embedded into the hull and sending a current of lightning through the creature. The Leviathan let out a bellow and fell, crashing through the wall of a nearby building and skidding to a stop in the center of what turned out to be the foyer of Central Bank.
“Well, that’s another one down.” Evelyn commented as she, Hulk and Thor stepped off the Leviathan, all three of them breathing heavily. “Only another million to go.”
Hulk grunted and without warning, punched Thor, sending him flying several feet to the side.
“Hulk!” Evelyn cried reproachfully as the green giant grinned. “Thor, you all right?”
“I’m fine!” Thor called back, having crashed through another wall and landed out in the street.
Evelyn flew out of the building with Hulk climbing over the still Leviathan and joining her outside. While he tossed around the warriors that approached, Evelyn flew higher up and fired several fireballs at the flyers she could see chasing after Natasha. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see lightning blasts not far from where she was indicating that Thor had rejoined the fight.
“Hawkeye! Phoenix!” Natasha called over the comms.
“Nat, what are you doing?” Clint asked incredulously.
“A little help!” Natasha shouted instead of replying.
Clint notched his bow while Evelyn flew up and formed a fireball in her hand.
“Waiting for your cue, Hawkeye.” Evelyn said.
There was a moment’s pause as Clint waited patiently for his shot to line up. “I got him.” He said finally, firing his arrow.
Loki caught the arrow without even looking right before it hit him in the face. He looked at it with a raised eyebrow.
“Phoenix.” Clint called, a smirk on his face.
Evelyn grinned and threw the fireball at Loki, causing his chariot to explode. He flew through the air and crashed on the veranda of Stark Tower just as Natasha dropped from the flyer she was riding and landed on the roof. Hulk roared and leapt into the air, rapidly crossing the distance between the bank and Stark Tower while Evelyn covered his back by throwing fireballs at any of the warriors that got near him.
Once he was out of sight, she blasted a wave of air at the group of warriors converging on her, sending them flying backwards before flying up towards the Tower herself.
She landed on the roof a few seconds later, finding Natasha looking at the generator and searching for a way to turn it off while Dr. Selvig lay in a heap against the wall.
“I’m not sure how to turn this thing off.” Natasha admitted as Evelyn checked on the elderly scientist.
“The Scepter…” Dr. Selvig groaned.
“It’s okay, Dr. Selvig. Just take it easy.” Evelyn soothed, helping the elderly man sit up.
“Loki’s Scepter.” The elderly scientist continued. “The energy. The Tesseract can’t fight, but you can’t protect against yourself.”
“I know you probably don’t believe me, but it’s not your fault.” Evelyn said gently.
“Evy’s right.” Natasha agreed. “You didn’t know what you were doing.”
“Actually, I think I did.” Dr. Selvig admitted. “I built in a safety to cut their power source.”
“Loki’s Scepter.” Natasha said in realization as Evelyn gaped at the scientist.
“It may be able to close the portal.” Dr. Selvig said, nodding. He looked down over the edge of the roof. “And I’m looking right at it.”
“Wait here.” Evelyn said, getting to her feet. She leapt off the roof and floated down to the veranda, grabbed the Scepter before flying back up.
“Right at the crown!” Dr. Selvig said, pointing to the spot when she landed back on the roof.
“Evy, let me do it.” Natasha said, holding her hands out for the Scepter. “You’re pregnant and there’s no telling what it can do.”
Evelyn nodded and handed the Scepter to the assassin before moving back several feet. Natasha pressed the tip at the barrier and began pushing against it, piercing through the field after several seconds of effort.
“Natasha’s closing it.” Evelyn called into her comms. “Does anyone copy. Natasha’s closing the portal.”
“Do it!” Steve ordered frantically.
“No, wait. ” Tony countered.
“Tony, these things are still coming and there’s no end in sight!” Evelyn said.
“I got a nuke coming in.” Tony told them. “It’s gonna blow in less than a minute.”
“Did he say ‘nuke’?” Clint asked in alarm.
“What idiot ordered a nuclear missile to be sent into a populated zone?!” Evelyn shrieked.
“Most likely the Council.” Tony replied dryly. “And I know just where to put this thing.”
For several tense seconds, they waited for Tony arrive with the missile, Evelyn wringing her fingers nervously. Finally, he flew passed them with it on his back, flying up the column of light and through the portal.
Again, they waited, anxious and desperate for the man to return. Meanwhile, all around them, the Chitauri warriors and Leviathans alike collapsed as though they were connected to a type of Hive-mind.
Evelyn didn’t notice though, far more concerned as the seconds ticked by with no sign of her nephew. “Come on, baby, where are you?” She muttered under her breath; her gaze fixed on the portal.
“Close it.” Steve ordered softly.
“What? No!” Evelyn cried. “Steve, Tony’s still up there!”
“Stella, the city.” Steve said softly, his voice filled with sympathy. “We can’t keep that portal open much longer.”
“Just a few more seconds, please!” Evelyn pleaded, tears in her eyes and streaming down her face. “He’s my baby. Please, he’s my baby!”
“I’m sorry, Stella.” Steve said apologetically, hating himself for what he was doing to his best friend. “Black Widow, close it.” He ordered.
“NO!” Evelyn screamed, falling to her knees, supported only by Dr. Selvig who quickly ran to her and wrapped his arms around her before she could fall completely.
Natasha gritted her teeth, not because of the pressure of pressing the Scepter against the barrier and piercing it, but because of anguish she could hear in the pregnant woman’s cries.
Evelyn panted heavily; her hands pressed against her protruding belly where the babies kicked frantically in response to her emotions. She groaned in pain, grabbing Dr. Selvig’s hands from where they were on her waist and squeezed them tightly as another wave of Braxton-Hicks contractions rocked through her, this time stronger than any of the previous ones.
“Dr. Stark, you need to try and relax.” He said soothingly, rubbing her back with one hand while letting her squeeze his other one. “The stress is not good for the baby.”
“Babies.” Evelyn corrected absently, leaning heavily against him. “I’m carrying twins.”
“The stress is definitely not good.” Dr. Selvig said.
Natasha pressed the Scepter against the crown just below the Tesseract and shut off the generator, the column of light fading out. With a rumbling sound, the portal sealed closed and Evelyn let out a sob, turning and burying her face in the elderly scientist’s chest.
“Evy, it’s Tony!” Natasha cried excitedly. “Look!”
Evelyn looked up and saw Tony falling through the sky. “Oh, thank God!” She breathed in relief. The relief was short-lived however as she noticed something very, very wrong. “He’s not slowing down!” She cried in alarm.
She moved away from Dr. Selvig and Natasha, gathering the air currents at her feet and shooting into the air, flying towards Tony’s falling form. Before she reached him however, Hulk, who had climbed up the side of the building closest to the billionaire, reached out and caught him before making his way back down. Evelyn followed after him, landing on the debris-filled streets just as the green giant crashed into the ground, curled protectively around Tony’s limp form.
“Tony!” She shouted, running towards him, uncaring of the stoned and pebbles pressing into her bare feet.
Thor and Steve turned the corner and ran towards them, reaching just as Hulk let go of Tony and sat up. Thor reached down and tore off the visor, revealing the billionaire’s features; his eyes were closed and his face almost peaceful.
“Come on, baby, wake up.” Evelyn pleaded under her breath, falling to her knees beside him. She tried to lean over him to check if he was breathing but her belly got in the way. “Steve, I can’t check.” She said frantically.
“It’s okay, I got it.” Steve said reassuringly, kneeling next to her.
“Come Evelyn, give him room.” Thor said gently, holding his hand out to Evelyn. She shakily reached out and took it, letting him help her to her feet.
As Steve checked Tony for signs of life, Thor wrapped his arm around Evelyn in support. The tiny woman was trembling, barely able to stay upright, and pleading under her breath for Tony to be alive, tears streaming down her face without pause.
The God of Thunder was confused at what Evelyn had said during her pleas to the Captain, the way she referred to Tony was not as a sister, rather almost maternal in nature. He wondered what their relationship truly was; it was obvious it was familial, but what exactly he didn’t know. There were also the little things that she, Steve and Tony had let slip over the past two days, from the way Evelyn and Steve behaved around one another to the way she had reacted to certain words and her words in the lab when it was revealed what Furious Nick and his organization had planned for the Tesseract to the name Steve had called her only a few minutes earlier. All of it indicated that there was far more to their story than what was revealed.
Steve shot up, his eyes wide and his hands shaking.
“S-Steve?” Evelyn asked in a quiet and shaky voice.
He just shook his head mutely, his eyes still wide and his face taking on an ashy pallor.
“No. Not my baby.” Evelyn breathed in despair, shaking her head. Her legs buckled beneath her, unable to support her weight and it was only Thor’s arms around her that kept her upright. She buried her head into his chest, crying uncontrollably while he rubbed her back soothingly.
Hulk looked at Evelyn sadly, each cry she uttered piercing his heart. The Pretty Bird, who carried the Little Gods, was crying because Tony wasn’t waking up. Frowning, he roared loudly.
Tony woke with a gasped scream. Evelyn whipped her head around and stared stunned at him, being supported by Thor when her legs threatened to give out again, this time in shock.
“What the hell?” Tony gasped.
“You’re alive.” Evelyn breathed in relief.
“What just happened?” Tony asked. “Please tell me nobody kissed me.”
“Do you see Pepper here?” Evelyn asked him rhetorically, kneeling down and taking his hand, holding it tightly since she wasn’t able to hug him while he was in his armor.
“Good point.” He muttered, groaning at the aches and pains his body began registering. He noticed the tear stains on her face, marking the tracks through the grime of the battle that covered her features. “What’s wrong?” He asked worriedly.
“I’m almost lost you.” She said quietly, tears once again filling her eyes. “When you went through that portal, you nearly didn’t make it out again.”
“I’m sorry for making you worry, Aunt Stell.” Tony said earnestly; unable to wipe away her tears, or even move for that matter, all he could do was speak to his distraught aunt.
Thor’s eyes widened in surprise at the title though he realized that it made sense, in a way. While he didn’t know how Evelyn could be Tony’s aunt, it did make him understand many of their interactions and how she was able to control him with a firm, yet gentle hand in a way that wasn’t possible between siblings.
“But not for going through the portal.” Evelyn stated.
“No.” Tony confirmed, shaking his head.
“You know, that’s your father in you.” She said, wiping away her tears and giving a small laugh. “But you know what? We won.”
“All right, yay!” Tony said weakly. “Hurray. Good job, guys. Let’s just not come in tomorrow. Let’s just take a day.” He winced. “Have you ever tried shawarma?” He asked randomly.
Evelyn and Steve looked at each other and shook their heads exasperatedly, both laughing lightly.
“That is definitely not from his father.” The Captain remarked, referring to the change in topics.
“No, that’s all Tony.” Evelyn said fondly.
“There’s a shawarma joint about two blocks from here.” Tony continued. “I don’t know what it is, but I want to try it.”
“We’re not finished yet.” Thor reminded them.
“No, we have one more thing left to do.” Evelyn agreed. Thor put his hand out to her, and she took it, letting him help her up.
“And then shawarma after.” Tony said.
“And then shawarma after.” Evelyn promised.
Steve helped Tony upright while Evelyn helped the billionaire recharge the arc reactor with the backup power. As soon as the armored man was once again able to move within the confines of the suit, they made their way back towards Stark Tower, joined by Clint on the way.
The trip was made in silence, Thor supporting Evelyn with one arm around her waist as they walked through the city; none of those with flight capabilities had the energy to carry those that couldn’t fly so they had settled on crossing the distance by foot. It was a slow trek, but none of them were overly hurried since Loki wasn’t going anywhere, especially as JARVIS reported that Natasha was keeping an eye on him until the rest of them arrived, though the Trickster was still where the Hulk had left him.
Eventually though, they reached the Tower and the Avengers gathered together in the common area of the penthouse watching as Loki pulled himself from where Hulk had left him, which turned out to be a decent sized hole in the middle of the room. Tony stood on one end with Hulk behind him and slightly to the left followed by Steve, Clint in the center directly in front of the Trickster, Thor, then Natasha holding Scepter tightly and finally Evelyn, seated on one of the leather chairs so she was off her feet.
Loki groaned and winced in pain, stiffly turning around when he heard the distinct hiss of an arrow being notched and the string drawn back. It was Clint, his arrow aimed directly at his heart.
“Good morning.” Evelyn said cheerfully, waving at him.
“If it’s all the same to you,” The Trickster said, looking between Evelyn and Tony on either side of the assembled group. He let out a pained breath. “I’ll have that drink now.”
Hulk growled and Loki flinched back instinctively, vividly remembering his encounter with the green giant only a short time earlier.