Chapter 2
Pietro opened his eyes and blinked a few times to clear the blur of the world around him. His breath caught in his throat, as in the confinement cell his only company had been the sound of his heartbeat, and he had gotten used to the steady pulse, but today it was different, faster. Much faster, with a rhythmic pounding that sounded like feet hitting solid ground as they ran. He looked at his hands, they were twitching, shaking as though they needed to move, to do something.
He looked up and out. He saw everyone working, but they were frozen solid, barely moving. Panicking as he couldn’t hear himself think over the pounding in his skull, and needed to move, he stood up. Immediately, he found himself hitting the front corner of the cell, everything moved by too fast for his mind to follow yet. He curled in on himself, trying to even out his breathing, but he ended up running again, this time pressing himself into the back corner of his cell, arms pressed against the walls, chest pumping in and out with such intensity.
This time, Pietro thought he had it under control. He slowly dropped his arms, and stepped forward, and this time when he rushed forward, his mind followed. He slowly looked at his hands, and then up again, looking at Strucker who was watching them from outside. Then, everything went dark.
Pietro fell back in surprise, only saved by his bed behind him. He laid there, staring at the ceiling, his breathing finally evening out to this new speed, and his heart beginning to quiet, if not slow. When he heard a low sound coming from outside the cell, he put all his focus into being both at his high speed while also comprehending what was going on around him. He could make out the words “power outage” “overload” and “Maximoff girl” he gasped, and bolted upright. Wanda! Was she alright? He rushed to the side of his cell, the one he knew she was behind.
“Sister?” He asked worriedly, though he was nearly certain she was fine, he felt a deeper connection between them then ever before, and he knew she safe, just confused.
Brother. A voice came back, but not through the wall, instead into his mind. He blinked in surprise before remembering her experiments had to do with the mind, and some form of mind control, he could tell now that must give her connections to others she was close to.
“Do you know what happened?” He muttered, hoping she knew what was going on.
I was experimenting, I guess I went overboard. He heard back. Pietro was relieved, but more than anything he was just happy to hear her voice again, if only in his head. They had been solitary for weeks now, and the final experiments must have just taken effect.
The lights blasted back on in a flash of blinding white light and a barrage of beeping, but Pietro was prepared, as he could see how the lights outside the room came on first, then slowly moved into the lights in the lab and their cells. He relaxed, running his fingers through long and wavy brown hair. Pietro suddenly realized how long his hair had really become and sighed, he needed a serious haircut.
He focused back in on slowing to the speed of the world around him and heard Strucker say “Test successful. Have someone check the twins vitals and get them clean. Then we will reunite and brief them.” Pietro sped around in a circle of pure joy. He would get to see her again, and feel clean for the first time since these awful tests began!
Pietro kicked his legs back and forth, anxiously awaiting the click of the lock and the door to finally open. Pietro had never realized how small the cell really was, but in the last few days, as the experiments’ effects set in, he had realized how claustrophobic he really felt. He already knew he didn’t like confinement, as it reminded him of being trapped with a bomb in his bedroom for days on end, but even though this was a very different situation, it still worsened his fear, and he was more than ready to escape, practically launching out the door the moment it opened, before stopping, knowing he should listen to the scientist who came to get him.
“Careful, your body functions are not used to the enhanced state.” The scientist said.
“I picked up on that.” He muttered his retort in Sokovian, as most of the scientists didn't know it.
“You know the rules.” The scientist replied, but it seemed more like a hopeful reminder. “And you don't want to be caught breaking them these days.” That part was whispered in Sokovian.
Pietro blinked in surprise, but nodded, assuming it would be unwise to pry further into that, at least for now. Strucker had always been crazy, but this seemed to indicate he’d gone off the deep end.
The scientist seemed visibly relieved and hurriedly rushed him on. “Just a few tests, like you would normally see at a doctor's appointment.” He explained, fingers nervously flicking a pen up and down. Pietro sat down without hesitation and let the scientist check his eyes, ears, nose and mouth.
The scientist spoke the whole time, which Pietro guessed was a way to call himself down more than Pietro. The scientist was named Alex, and he loved to rant about his troubles, though as much as his stories about annoying employees and terrible food were nice to hear, Pietro could clearly tell Alex was holding something, or more likely, a lot of things back.
It was, however, a pleasant reminder of what it was like to be normal, that is, until the reflex test. Pietro saw it coming, and it was so slow, he watched it happen and his leg swung out like it naturally should, but in accordance with his speed. He immediately focused back in on slowing his mind to understand what Alex was saying, and found out that when he did that, others only saw a silvery-blue blur. He was surprised by this, but happy, because at least he appeared as something and it was a nice color too.
After that, none of the results could be considered the human normal, but Alex assured Pietro they were healthy for his enhanced state. They laughed together when the blood pressure machine started beeping because it thought he was in critical condition, Alex nearly jumped at the sound of Pietro’s loud and fast beating heart, and they both kept trying to convince the other and themselves that everything would be just fine.
After the tests, Alex directed Pietro to a bathroom in the facility, handed him a folded pile of clothes and turned to go find a place to wait. “I’m supposed to stick around in case something goes wrong.” He explained.
Pietro nodded, and rushed inside, grateful to finally be able to clean. As he stood in the shower, freezing water getting warmer at what felt like a snail’s pace to Pietro, he tried out his new speed.
He looked down at his hands with a frustrated frown. The nerves in his hands were smaller than most, so they shook a little as they were still adapting. He tried to write his name against the wall of the shower by wiping away the water, but it just descended into a scribble. Pietro sighed, and tried again. The same thing happened, though he could get the first few letters in before it messed itself up. With a sigh, Pietro gave up, he wouldn’t be drawing again anytime soon.
Focusing back in on the task at hand, now also happy with the temperature of the water, Pietro washed himself. He cursed serval times as the soap slipped through his fingers but internally he was purely satisfied. Once he had finished, he stepped out of the shower, and used a towel to dry himself off, smiling when his hair fluffed up as he dried it.
Pietro decided he liked his new clothes. They had given him a black long sleeve sweatshirt with white arrows down each shoulder and arm. This was over a black shirt with green details. The pants they gave him were simple black sweatpants. He enjoyed the intimidating air it gave him, and headed back out to join Alex.
“That was fast.” Alex laughed at his own joke. “Sorry.” He apologized immediately afterward but Pietro just smirked.
“Where now?” He asked, and smiled slightly. He was cutting corners when it came to speaking with good grammar too. Wanda would be disappointed.
“I’m guessing you want a haircut.” Alex suggested, and Pietro nodded his thanks. “I know someone.” He then pulled out a walkie-talkie and flipped between the channels. The static buzzed in the quiet air around them, but eventually Alex stopped with a tired sigh. “Caroline?” He asked quietly.
“Alex?” A voice buzzed back after a moment of tense silence.
“Yeah. You mind coming to sector 4 hallway Y? Subject 5, the speedster, yeah he needs a serious haircut.” Alex laughed a little as he said it.
“I am definitely on top of that!” Caroline replied cheerfully. Seconds later, Pietro heard the whoosh of wheels on cement, and seconds after that, a janitor’s cart came whipping around the corner, nothing visible of the small statured girl behind it except a messy black bun bobbing along as she ran.
The cart screeched to a halt and Caroline stepped to the side. She smiled proudly at the two boys, hands on her hips. Her face was riddled with freckles and dust, so much you could hardly tell what was what. Her skin was surprising pale compared with her thick black hair, and her clothes just too long. “What do you need?” She asked, looking directly at Pietro. This made him happy, she and Alex didn’t treat him like an experiment, just who he was, a boy.
“A haircut. Anything.” He smiled. Sure, Pietro knew that wasn’t proper English, but he was too tired to try.
Caroline laughed, but nodded. She pulled a basket out from her cart and sifted through it. Hair supplies of every kind went by, but eventually she nodded, seeming to have a plan. Alex tapped Pietro on the shoulder, and he turned to see the scientist had gotten a chair.
Pietro sat down and Caroline got to work. Hair fell in front and around his face, and Pietro began to tap his foot as he waited. He only realized he was tapping at blur speed when he heard the echo of Caroline’s laugh. He stopped, and glanced up at her apologetically. Caroline just waved it off, and continued her work.
Several minutes later, she handed him a mirror. “I finished cutting, Do you want dye?” She asked.
Pietro examined his haircut with fascination. It naturally fell back in layered waves, that reminded him of the wind whipping through his hair as he ran. “Actually, white sounds cool.” He said, trying to be smooth.
Caroline giggled as he stumbled over the English way of phrasing things, but then she pulled out the bleach and dye and nodded. “White would look amazing.”
The returned to the bathroom so she could lean him over the small tub so the dye wouldn’t go everywhere, as well as reassuring him nothing would get on his face. Pietro closed his eyes and held his breath anyway, unable to shake the paranoia.
He zoned out so much she had to tap him when she was finished, and he slowly blinked his eyes open. “Finished.” She handed him the mirror again. He glanced down, and nearly did a double take. His hair looked amazing. The dye was high in quality, and just used to make his hair more white instead of bleach blond. He was relieved as he had worried that he would look ancient. Instead, he looked cooler than ever.
“Thank you.” He finally said, turning to hand Caroline back her mirror. She was gone, only a small note sat on the ground, stating that he could keep the mirror, she had to get back to work. He smiled slightly, flipped the mirror shut and put it in his pocket.
He turned and joined Alex back outside. “Ready to see your sister?” He asked.
“Always.” He grinned, and Alex turned, leading the way.
Wanda! I’m coming! He screamed out in his mind, hoping she would hear.
I know. I’m waiting for you. Just down this hallway, third door on the left. She instructed in his mind. Pietro leapt into full speed, and only just caught Alex’s confused shout of surprise as he raced down the hallway and whacked the door open. He scanned the room quickly, found Wanda and rushed over to her. Pietro then picked up his sister in hug, only letting go and focusing back to normal speed when he had calmed down and stopped himself from crying.
Wanda smiled slightly at him, but both of them tried to close off their emotions while everyone else was around.
“I see you have adapted to your newfound abilities.” A cold hiss of a voice said from behind them. The twins turned practically in unison, glaring with the rage of the sun at Strucker. He just raised an annoyed eyebrow and continued on. “Well you will begin to train with these tomorrow but as for now….” He trailed off as he heard something spoken into the earpiece he wore. He turned away and began order everyone about.
Seconds later, a voice came over the facility’s intercom. “Report to your stations immediately, this is not a drill, we are under attack.” Scientists and soldiers rushed everywhere. Pietro reached down and held Wanda’s hand tight, as if to reassure her.
They both waited in the shadows of the room as everyone rushed past them, and Pietro glanced toward Wanda. Who is attacking? He asked quietly in his mind.
I can’t tell, but it might be the Avengers? Wanda made her response with confusion.
Why would the Avengers attack S.H.I.E.L.D? Pietro thought, mostly to himself, but to his sister as well.
This is hardly S.H.I.E.L.D brother, haven’t you noticed? She glanced at him with surprise.
Of course, but why this facility? They don’t know about us, and why would it matter it they did? He started to look around the room, but continued to keep his head bent.
It doesn’t matter. If they send us out, at least we can hurt Stark. Wanda replied decidedly. Pietro gave a slight nod, as that would be enough for him.
He started to focus when Strucker returned. “Who gave the order to attack?” He demanded.
“Strucker, it’s the Avengers.” The man replied in a panic. “They landed in the forest, the perimeter guard panicked.” He explained.
Strucker whispered something he could only make out as “They...after...Scepter.” Before turning to face the man again. “Can we hold them?” He demanded angrily.
“They’re the Avengers.” The man replied in shocked confusion.
Strucker just ignored the man. “Deploy the rest of the tanks, concentrate fire on the weak ones.”
Can you listen in on their whispers? Pietro asked Wanda, still watching Strucker.
I think so. Strucker is speaking. “With everything we’ve accomplished. We are on the verge of our greatest breakthrough.” Now the scientist. “Then let’s show them what we’ve accomplished. Send out the twins.” They both looked at each other in surprise, but Wanda continued. Strucker is refusing. The scientist still wants us to fight. Strucker thinks his men can hold the Avengers. Wanda seemed to scoff, even though they were speaking through thoughts.
We have to fight. Not to protect the place, but to mess with the Avengers. Show them what we can do. Pietro thought.
Mess with the Avengers and give Stark a hard time. This is a better plan. You go out into the field, and I’ll stay as defense. Wanda replied.
Pietro nodded. This was a much more exciting way to spend an attack on the facility, rather than just hide like they were told to. He ran out of the room without hesitation and followed the path of soldiers to get outside. When he did, he nearly ran a circle for joy. He’d been in the facility for what felt like forever, and it was good to be outside again. He took one moment to enjoy the feeling of the cold wind and snow before racing into the forest.
The first thing to catch Pietro’s eye was the Archer. He was hiding behind a tree, waiting for an opportunity. Pietro did the same, and when the Archer shot his arrow, Pietro ran out and caught it midair. He threw it into the cold snow just in case it was explosive and kept running. He curved his trajectory toward the Archer, who, now confused, was aiming another arrow. In one fluid motion, Pietro took the arrow from the bow and shoved the Archer over.
Pietro slowed down as the Archer regained his balance. “What, you didn’t see that coming?” He asked smugly, before grinning and running away again.
Next he ran toward the Captain, sweeping his legs out from under him as he passed. He was laughing, but tried to keep it to himself.
Don’t have too much fun. He heard Wanda in his mind.
Why not? He responded with a laugh. They’ve lowered the barrier, coming your way. He added.
As if I couldn’t tell by the screaming panic, don’t worry, I can handle them. Get somewhere safe. She responded quickly.
Pietro almost nodded, before realizing they weren’t actually speaking to each other. This was going to take a lot more getting used to. On it.
Pietro raced further into the forest, and slumped against a tree. He took deep breaths of air, and put a hand to his head. His ears were ringing. Running like this was actually tiring him out.
Are you safe? He heard Wanda whisper.
Yeah, don’t worry. Pietro replied.
Mind if I try having you see through my eyes? I don’t know if it will work. She asked.
Go ahead. Flashes of the dark, blinding light, and red came through, and then nothing. He heard Wanda gasp. Be safe sister, you don’t have to keep trying. He said in a panic.
The Captain is here, I cannot focus, sorry brother. She responded, and then went silent. He could feel her focus and stayed tense, because even though he knew Wanda could handle herself, Pietro still worried for her.
Too nervous to stay where he was, Pietro stood up, shifting toe to toe before making his decision. He had to go and make sure Wanda was alright. He raced back toward the facility, but for his sister’s sake bothered to take a longer way back as to avoid the fighting.
When he got to the facility, he followed what he felt must be Wanda all the way to a room he’d never seen before. The scepter was there, and Wanda, as well as Tony Stark.
Pietro angrily bit his lip to keep quiet, and stood at Wanda’s side. Stark was just standing there, staring at something only he could see. What’s going on? He asked.
I made him see what he fears. Failure. Wanda hissed determinedly.
Stark suddenly shook his head, as though snapping out of a daydream, but Pietro knew he couldn’t have done it on free will. Wanda had let him go. Pietro narrowed his eyes in confusion, but he trusted her.
In one motion, Stark snatched the scepter, turned and left, without even glancing back at the twins.
“We’re just going to let him take it?” Pietro muttered the question without even realizing.
Wanda just smiled. It’s not what he thinks.
The twins headed out of the facility, hand in hand, and made their way back home.
“It all feels, different, now.” Pietro muttered in Sokovian, looking at everything as if it were the first time. They hadn’t been away for too long, but it felt like forever, as Sokovia had always been their home, and they never left it for long.
“Different, but familiar.” Wanda said with a nod of agreement.
“I have felt your powers, but do you want to know mine?” Pietro asked.
“Of course.” Wanda smiled. Pietro picked her up and ran. He heard the wisps of her laughter against the wind as he ran.
Pietro had to force himself to stop as they reached their apartment, because the thrill of it all felt so good. “This your stop.” He joked.
Wanda laughed, and carefully stood up as he set her back down. “That was incredible Pietro.” She complimented.
He grinned, proud to have the approval of his sister who could control minds. “Hungry?” Pietro asked her.
“Hungry.” Wanda agreed, and the twins headed inside their apartment, as if everything was just as normal.
The pizza had only just arrived when they got the message. Wanda stood up suddenly, glaring down at her computer. “Pietro, come look at this.” She said quietly.
He was over in an instant, pizza still in his hands. “What?” Pietro anxiously put a hand on his sister’s shoulder to comfort her.
“Someone knows who we are. They want to meet in the church. Now.” She explained.
Pietro skimmed over the message as he took a bite out of his pizza. “We should go, you can get a good read on them, then I’ll do whatever you need me to.” He decided.
“Let’s go. And leave the pizza, I still don’t understand why you like it so much.” Wanda replied, trying to brighten up their situation.
The twins walked to the church in silence, Pietro contemplating all the ways he could mess with this guy once they got to him. This mysterious man made his sister worried, he would do whatever it took to make sure she was safe from him.
“Talk.” Wanda spoke nearly the moment they got inside. “And if you are wasting our time-”
He cut her off. “Did you know this church is in the exact center of the city? The elders decreed it so that everyone could be equally close to God. I like that. The geometry of belief.” He paused, one hand still hanging in the air from his speech. “You’re wondering why you can’t look inside my head.” It wasn’t a question, and Pietro frowned in frustration.
“Sometimes it’s hard. But sooner or later, every man shows himself.” She replied. Pietro knew she was bluffing, she really hadn’t had enough practice to say for sure.
He stood up, and stepped around the side of the chair he had been lounging on. This was no man, this was a robot, or something like one at least. Pietro closed his fists in preparation, and stepped closer to Wanda.
“Oh I’m sure they do. But you needed something more than a man. That’s why you let Stark take the scepter.” The robot continued on. Pietro glanced at Wanda in surprise. You expected this?
“I didn’t expect…” she answered him out loud, and continued to speak to cover it up. “But I saw Stark’s fear, I knew it would control him, make him self-destruct.”
“Everyone creates the thing they dread. Men of peace create engines of war, invaders create avengers, people create...smaller people? Uh...children! I lost the word there. Children. Designed to supplant them, to help them...end.” The robot elaborated.
Pietro rolled his eyes. He was a robot, there is no possible way he could forget a word.
Wanda continued anyway, seemingly much more comfortable talking to this thing than Pietro was. “Is that why you’ve come?” She asked. “To end the Avengers?”
“I’ve come to save the world.” The robot corrected. “But also, yeah.” He conceded. “We’ll move out right away. This is a start, but there’s something we need to begin the real work.”
He took them back to the facility they had only just left, and showed them what he’d been working on. Pietro had no idea how he’d accomplished everything so quickly.
Several more robots, significantly less advanced than the leader, emerged. “All of these are...All of these are…” Wanda searched for an answer.
“Me.” The main robot offered. “I have what the Avengers never will. Harmony. They’re discordant, disconnected. Stark’s already got them turning on each other. And when you get inside the rest of their heads…” He was hoping for Wanda to finish.
Pietro couldn’t stand and watch anymore. He was Wanda’s twin, not her sidekick. He spoke up. “Everyone’s plan is not to kill them.”
“And make them martyrs?” The robot had understood his meaning. “You need patience. Need to see the big picture.”
“I don’t see the big picture, I have a little picture. I take it out and look at it every day.” He demanded insistently. Wanda glanced up at him sadly.
“You lost your parents in the bombings. I’ve seen the records.” This just made Pietro angrier.
“The records are not the picture.” He was sick of this know-it-all robot expecting everything.
“Pietro.” Wanda warned.
“No please.” The robot said instead.
As much as he hated this offer, Pietro needed to get this off his chest. “We were ten years old, having dinner, the four of us. When the first shell hits, two floors below, it makes a hole in the floor. It’s big. Our parents go in and the whole building starts coming apart. I grab her, roll under the bed and the second shell hits. But, it doesn’t go off. It just...sits there in the rubble, three feet from our faces. And on the side of the shell is painted one word…” He relayed everything as the memories came back to him over and over again.
“Stark.” Wanda filled in, swallowing hard as she must be feeling his pain as well as her own.
“We were trapped two days.” He muttered in aggravation.
“Every effort to save us, every shift in the bricks, I think, ‘This will set it off.’ We wait for two days for Tony Stark to kill us.” Wanda finishes for him.
“I know what they are.” Pietro stated.
“I wondered why only you two survived Strucker’s experiments.” The robot said incredulously. “Now I don’t. We will make it right. You and I can hurt them.” He glanced briefly at Pietro. “But you will tear them apart, from the inside.” He said, looking directly into Wanda’s eyes. She stared right back.
The following days consisted of them going on shorter missions. They dealt with anything leading back to them first, no traces or witnesses left behind. Even over time, Pietro still kept his distance from the robot, whom he now knew as Ultron.
Ultron and Wanda worked as a strikingly good duo, which annoyed Pietro. That was his sister, and he was not going to let Ultron drag her away. He spoke of grand things, though most of it was just talk. Pietro suspected he enjoyed the sound of his own voice, much like his creator, Tony Stark.
The mission they were currently on was to gather the materials for a more powerful body Ultron hoped to create. The salvage yard they walked through was dark and dusty, and reminded Pietro of the facility. He focused on the mission.
Now. Wanda said with a nod, and Pietro rushed away, pulling the plug on the power generator before rushing back to join Wanda as they entered the office of Ulysses Klaue.
The man in question had his back to them, and Pietro could tell he was holding a gun. Klaue slowly turned around, and aimed his gun towards them. Pietro stepped to the side, and the man fired.
Pietro lost focus on the speed of the world around him and grabbed the bullet, before racing to grab the gun and unload it, lining the bullets up on the table. He ducked back and crossed his arms, and Wanda joined him moments later.
“Yeah,” Klaue said. “The enhanced. Strucker’s prize pupils.” he paused this drama to pick up a bowl of candy sitting at his desk. “Want a candy?” He offered.
Yes. Pietro thought.
Don't you dare. Wanda replied, glancing at him.
“Oh sorry to hear about Strucker.” Klaue barrelled on. Another man who likes to hear himself talk. “But then, he knew what kind of world he was helping create. Human life, not a growth market.”
He's dead? Pietro was surprised, and looked at Wanda.
Ultron must have dealt with him when we were going through the facility files. Wanda guessed.
At least we don't have to deal with him. Pietro decided.
Klaue, oblivious to their conversation, spoke again. “You, you didn't know? Is this your first time intimidating someone? I’m afraid that I'm not that afraid.”
Wanda took this chance to speak up. “Everybody’s afraid of something.”
Klaue widened his eyes, feigning shock. “Cuttlefish. Deep sea fish. They make lights. Disco lights. Whoom, whoom. I saw a documentary, it was terrifying.”
Tired of this talk, Pietro snatched up a candy and popped it in his mouth, happy when Klaue flinched with fear.
As expected, he just kept on talking anyway. “So if you're going to fiddle with my brain and make me see a giant cuttlefish, then I know you don't do business, and I know you're not in charge, and I only deal with the man in charge.”
Pietro watched Ultron float up to the window behind them, and had to keep himself from rolling his eyes. Everyone had to have dramatic flair.
“There is no “man” in charge.” Ultron said as he crashed through the window, pinning down Klaue. He leaned over the man, whose face was now full of confused shock. “Let's talk business.”
Klaue leads them to the Vibranium with some reluctance. He hands Ultron a cylinder of it.
“Upon this rock I will build my church. Vibranium.” Ultron muttered as he examined it. He then tossed the cylinder to Pietro.
Pietro looked down at the precious metal in his hands with some awe.
“You know, it came at a great personal cost. It's worth billions.” Klaue said, hand to the back of his neck.
Ultron just laughed. “Now, so are you. It's all under your dummy holdings? Finance is so weird. But I always say, ‘Keep your friends and your enemies rich, and wait to find out which is which.’”
“Stark.” Klaue said suddenly. Pietro glanced around anxiously, but no one was there.
“What?” Ultron demanded.
“Tony Stark used to say that...to me. You're one of his.” He elaborated.
“What?! I'm not..!” No one had to look inside Ultron’s head to tell you he was angry. He grabbed Klaue. “I'm not. You think I'm one of Stark's puppets, his hollow men?” He hissed.
“I mean look at me, do I look like Iron Man? Stark is nothing!” He shouted, and swung his arm down. The heat and force sliced Klaue's arm clean off. Pietro sucked in a breath.
“I'm sorry. I am sor...Ooh, I'm sure that's going to be okay. I'm sorry, it's just I don't understand. Don't compare me with Stark!” Ultron pretended to apologize.
He then proceeded to reverse the efforts of that apology by kicking Klaue down the stairs. “It's a thing with me. Stark is, he's a sickness!”
Pietro spun around as he heard the clang of metal behind him.
Stark stood there, flanked by the captain and the god. “You're going to break your old man's heart.” The sarcasm dripped off his words like sap.
“If I have to.” Ultron hissed.
“We don't have to break anything.” Thor spoke up, trying to hold the fragile strands of peace.
“Clearly you've never made an omelet.” Ultron joked.
“He beat me by one second.” Stark said disappointedly.
Pietro couldn’t take this stupid back and forth joking any longer. He mocked them. “Ah, this is funny, Mr. Stark. It's what, comfortable? Like old times?”
“This was never my life.” Tony said, though Pietro guessed he was trying to convince himself.
The captain looked over at the twins now. “You two can still walk away from this.” He tried to persuade them.
“Oh, we will.” Wanda said. Her mind was made up, and therefore so was Pietro’s.
“I know you've suffered.” He tried again.
“Ugh!” Ultron groaned, stepping in. “Captain America. God's righteous man, pretending you could live without a war. I can't physically throw up in my mouth, but…”
Thor spoke again. “If you believe in peace, then let us keep it.” Clearly he thought there was still some reconciliation that could be made. Pietro almost felt bad.
“I think you're confusing peace with quiet.” Ultron said dryly.
“Yuh-huh.” Stark brushed him off. “What's the Vibranium for?”
Pietro figured if it was possible for him to roll his eyes, Ultron would be. “I'm glad you asked that, because I wanted to take this time to explain my evil plan!” He shouted sarcastically. The other robots burst through the wall behind them with dramatically good timing, and the fight finally begins.
Pietro immediately drops his focus and moves back into speed time. He runs across the bridge, shoving Thor out of his way as he goes. He wants a good vantage point, but it looks like the battle is about to get a lot more busy, judging by whatever Klaue is shouting at his men. Pietro slows down for a moment to listen.
“Shoot them!” Klaue shouts.
“Which ones?” His mercenary is in a confused panic as he loads his gun.
“All of them!” Klaue screams without second thought.
Pietro leaves them behind and keeps running now toward the Captain. He dodges around blasts ricocheting away from Stark and Ultron’s fight, and bent over backwards to avoid the shield. He swung a punch as he regained his balance, hitting Captain America with an uppercut. He relished in the shock of the Captain’s face as he knocked backwards and hit the nearby wall.
Pietro kept running, but paused when Thor’s hammer passed him. He smiled, and grabbed onto the hammer. He yelped in surprise as it dragged him along, and then swung him off. Pietro landed in a pile of boxes and groaned. He figured he was bruised all over. He sucked in gasps of air, and tried to steady his breathing. Pietro hadn’t realized how long he’d been running, but now that he stopped he was exhausted.
Using his arms to support himself, Pietro started to get up. The world was shaking, and everything was blurry, and he didn’t even notice the Captain coming up toward him. He only realized when he got shoved back down by the blunt front of the shield.
“Stay down, kid.” The Captain warned before running off again.
Pietro put a hand to his head as if it would stop the ringing. Are you alright? He heard Wanda ask.
I’ll be fine. He responded, curling and uncurling his fists in an attempt to stop the shaking. Fast metabolism, remember?
When you’re ready, I need your help getting into the Captain’s head. He’s on guard, I can’t get close. Wanda explained.
On my way. Pietro stood up, taking deep breaths to regain focus. He then ran, barreling full force into Captain America. The force knocked the Captain against a wall and when he was unfocused from the pain, Wanda used her magic. The red-orange strands seemed to make their way into the veins of his head, a beautiful virus.
Pietro nodded to Wanda, and she snuck off. He leaned against a wall, ears still ringing, and watched. The salvage yard had stayed surprisingly intact considering the battle that raged within. Some of Klaue’s men had begun firing at each other in confusion.
Suddenly, Pietro heard Wanda scream. The panic that washed over him made him nearly miss it was only inside his head. Following the instinctual connection between them, Pietro raced up the stairs and knocked the archer through a window in his anger to protect Wanda from him. He peeled the arrow off of her head, and she fainted into him. Picking her up the same way he had previously he ran off with her, glaring at the archer the whole time.
Pietro ran faster than he had ever tried before, and they were outside in under a second. Wanda was awake now, one hand to her head. “What can I do?” He asked worriedly, one arm around her.
“Ah, it hurts…” Wanda managed to breathe out.
“I’m gonna kill him. I’ll be right back.” Pietro told her, anger taking over.
“No.” She said, stopping him. “I’m over it. I want...I want to finish the plan.” Wanda looked up. “I want the big one.” Pietro followed her gaze to the man anxiously gazing out of the Quinjet. He nodded, and picked her up again. He raced her over so she was just out of his sight, and watched as she manipulated him into becoming the Hulk.
The twins watched him stumble toward the city. Pietro felt bad, innocents might get hurt. I know brother, but this is for good. Wanda reminded him.
Pietro nodded, and instead watched the jet landing nearby. An Iron Legion robot stepped out. “Well, what are you waiting for?” It asked them in Ultron’s voice. The twins glanced at each other, shrugged, and got on. “Time for stage two.” The bot reported.
Pietro took a nap as they flew, to regain his strength and slept off the headache. His dreams were less than ideal at first, visions of blood on a shield, screaming, a floor cracking, the feeling of dust in his lungs, a sharp piercing feeling and the pounding of his heart in his ears. He realized he must have been screaming when he felt a wave of calm settle over him, and then nothing, just a cool blackness. Wanda was keeping his mind clear. He mentally thanked her, before falling into an even deeper sleep, one without dreams.
What must have been a few hours later, Pietro woke to Wanda lightly shaking him awake.
“We are here.” She whispered. He nodded, and got up, grateful to find his headache was gone.
“Thank you.” He said, as he only ever thanked her internally the night before.
“You’re welcome brother.” Wanda replied, smiling slightly.
Pietro held Wanda’s hand as they left the jet, but this time he was the one who needed reassurance.
Ultron, now back in his best body, which the robots must have assembled as they flew, greeted them. “How are you Pietro? I don't understand how dreams work, but you seemed uncomfortable.” He was trying to look for the right words, but Pietro didn't appreciate his attempt.
“I'm fine. Let's keep moving.” He said coldly. He clutched Wanda’s hand tighter.
Wanda lifted Ultron into the lab through an open window, and Pietro ran through the building. The staff would think it was a gust of wind, and wouldn’t investigate.
They waited five minutes for Helen Cho to arrive, and when she did, she immediately gasped in shock.
“Scream, and your entire staff dies.” Ultron warned. “I could've killed you, Helen, the night we met. I didn't.”
“Do you expect a thank you note?” She said dryly, voice full of hate.
“I expect you to know why.” Ultron prompted.
“The Cradle.” She gasped. Ultron played back a recording of her. “This is the next thing, Tony.”
“This...is the next me.” As usual, the robot was dramatic.
“The regeneration cradle prints tissue, it can't build a living body.” Pietro was surprised at how calm she sounded despite the circumstances.
“It can, you can. You lack the materials.” Ultron stepped forward. “You're a brilliant woman Helen. But we all have room to improve.” With that, Ultron lifted the scepter, which he had held behind him, and stabbed Cho with it.
Pietro nearly gasped before he heard Wanda in his head. Mind control, he did not kill her. She explained. He let out the breath he was holding.
The next few hours, the twins worked on closing off the lab. No one could know what went on inside these walls, at least not until it was complete. Pietro blocked off all entrances, locked all the windows and kept up making the lab look like it was operating as normal. Wanda shut down its internet access, and closed off all of the files that could let something leak. She set out reports that the lab was closing itself off to protect from threats, and that it had been having internet problems anyway. After everything was set in place, the twins returned to check on Ultron’s progress.
“Cellular cohesion will take a few hours, but we can initiate the consciousness stream. We’re uploading your cerebral matrix...now.” Helen reported.
“I can read him.” Wanda said with some surprise. “He is dreaming.”
What about? Pietro asked.
Not sure, I’d have to touch him to find out. Wanda said, and shrugged slightly.
“I wouldn’t call it dreams.” Helen was explaining. “It’s Ultron’s base consciousness, informational noise. Soon-”
Ultron, as usual, cut her off. “How soon? I’m not being pushy.”
“We’re imprinting a physical brain. There are no shortcuts. Even if your magic gem is-” She never got to finish her statement, as Wanda suddenly screamed.
Pietro launched to his sister’s side, protecting her. “How could you?” Wanda spits at Ultron.
“How could I what?” For once the robot seems genuinely shocked.
“You said we would destroy the Avengers, make a better world.” Wanda snarled at him in frustration.
“It will be better.” Ultron was catching on now, and so was Pietro, as he looked back and forth between the two.
“When everyone is dead.” She finished for him.
“That is not!” Ultron seemed to be panicking. “The human race will have every opportunity to improve.” He tried to reason.
“And if they don’t?” Pietro growled, protective of his sister.
“Ask Noah.” Ultron said simply. He was clearly done with them.
“You’re a madman.” Wanda said, eyes narrowed.
“There were more than a dozen extinction level events before even the dinosaurs got theirs. When the Earth starts to settle, a God throws a stone at it, and believe me, he’s winding up. We have to evolve. There’s no room for the weak.” Ultron sounded like he was trying to validate himself, but Pietro wouldn’t take it. He’d never trusted the robot, and this just drove his point home.
Throughout this speech, the twins were talking to each other mentally.
Brother, I need a distraction.Wanda started.
Can’t I just run us out of here? Pietro asked.
No, we need to save Helen or Ultron will still get what he wants. She explained.
I understand, leave it to me.
Pietro spoke again, so that Wanda would have her opportunity. “And who decides who’s weak?” He demanded. Out of the corner of his eye, Pietro could see Wanda break the scepter’s hold, but he restrained himself from reacting.
“Life. Life always decides.” Ultron decided. He glanced up suddenly. “There’s incoming. The Quinjet. We have to move.” He turned to see Helen Cho cancelling the upload.
“That’s not a problem.” She said boldly. Ultron blasted her, and Wanda gasped. Pietro grabbed her and ran. He unlocked the doors on his way, and shouted for the lab technicians to run.
When they got outside Wanda immediately turned to Pietro. “I can't believe I trusted him for so long.” She apologized.
“He talked of grand things, made you think it was not the way it was. It's alright sister.” He comforted.
“What now?” She muttered the question, and Pietro could tell she was afraid to ask.
Pietro simply shrugged, afraid to tell his sister he was lost. She smiled sadly, and grabbed his hand. They walked the streets, lost in their own thoughts but not communicating between them.
Just then, Pietro heard something that made him stop. He couldn’t understand the language, but he knew panic when he heard it. Turning to face the television near them, the twins watched a broadcast. The Avengers were here, and they were trying to get the cradle from Ultron.
Captain America? Should we help? Pietro asked, making sure he knew what to do.
Yes. Wanda nodded. Pietro lifted her into his arms again, and ran, jumping onto the train through a window. It terrified the nearby passengers, but there was no time to worry about that now.
He ran ahead first, and shoved Ultron off balance as he passed, turning to face him when he stopped. Ultron, already angry, tried to reach Pietro, but Wanda bent parts of the train into his way, blocking him off.
Pietro watched as Ultron morphed from anger to desperation before he turned and faced Wanda. “Please. Don't do this.” The robot begged.
“What choice do we have?” She responded coldly.
Ultron turned back around, and lifted his hands to blast again. Pietro gasped, and ducked, dodging out of the way just in time. When he turned back around, Ultron was gone.
“If you have the package, get it to Stark! Go!” The Captain was shouting in panic. “Go!” With that, he turned and looked right at Pietro. “Civilians in our path.” He relayed.
Pietro nodded, knowing what he wanted him to do. He jumped out the same window he came in, and began racing along the street, picking up everyone standing near the train, and moving them out of its reach. Most people yelped in surprise, some kicked, not knowing he was trying to help. He heard the screech of the train behind him, but didn't look back, even in speed time. If he did, Pietro worried he would lose focus, and if he lost focus, someone could die.
Once everyone was out of the way, Pietro rushed to the side to catch his breath. He leaned over, supporting himself against a wall, and took deep gasps of air. Wanda was over to him so fast Pietro could call her the one with super speed.
Are you alright? She panicked.
“I'm fine.” He reassured. “I just need to take a minute.”
“I'm very tempted not to give you one.” The Captain warned as he walked toward them.
Wanda frowned, then turned toward him. “The Cradle, did you get it?”
“Stark will take care of it.” He tried to assure them.
“No, he won't.” Wanda said coldly.
“You don't know what you're talking about, Stark's not crazy.” His response was defensive, but hesitant.
“He will do anything to make things right.” Wanda narrowed her eyes.
The Captain ignored her, thinking. “Stark, come in. Stark. Anyone on comms?” He tried.
“Ultron can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it. Where do you think he gets that?” She demanded, staring him down.
The Captain seemed to cave. He sighed and nodded. “Come on.” He muttered.
The ride to the Avengers tower was tense. In the first thirty minutes it was practically silent, but eventually it seemed Captain America couldn’t take the silence anymore.
He sat down next to them. “I guess we never introduced.” He tried. “I’m Steve Rogers, or Captain America if you prefer.” He shrugged. “And you guys?” He prompted.
“You know who we are.” Wanda said.
“I want to hear it from you.” He was trying to connect with them.
“Pietro.” He spoke suddenly, looking up at Captain America. “Pietro Maximoff.”
Wanda sighed. “Wanda Maximoff. We are twins.” She added.
“Nice to meet you.” Steve smiled at them. “Why don’t you trust Stark?” He asked.
Pietro blinked in surprise at the randomness of this question, but nodded slowly. “When we were little, his bombs killed our parents. We were trapped in our room for two days with a bomb, waiting to die.” He explained quietly.
Steve slowly put a hand to his mouth. “Oh, I’m so sorry.” He apologized.
“It’s alright.” Wanda assured him. “But now we believe Stark will try to create a better Ultron, but in turn he will create another monster to destroy the world.” She explained. Steve nodded, and the three of them fell back into uncomfortable silence for the rest of the ride to the Avengers tower.
The moment they landed, the three of them rushed toward the lab. Pietro offered to run ahead, but Steve stopped him, convincing him they needed to do this together so no one got hurt.
“The genetic coding tower’s at ninety-seven percent. You have got to upload that schematic in the next three minutes.” They overheard Banner saying as they entered.
Everyone was immediately on guard. “I’m gonna say this once.” Steve started boldly.
“How about ‘nonce’?” Stark replied sarcastically.
“Shut it down!” Steve demanded.
“Nope, not gonna happen.” Both of them were holding their ground.
“You don’t know what you’re doing.” Steve tried.
“And you do?” Banner cut in. “She’s not in your head?” He nodded toward Wanda.
Pietro narrowed his eyes, but Wanda spoke up first. “I know you’re angry.” She tried.
“Oh, we’re way past that. I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade.” His response was cold, without remorse.
Pietro shifted toe to toe, getting anxious. “Banner, after everything that’s happened-” Steve tried again.
Once again, he was cut off, this time by Stark. “That’s nothing compared to what’s coming!”
“You don’t know what’s in there!” Wanda seemed as anxious as Pietro.
“This isn’t a game…” Steve was running out of things to say.
“The creature…!”
Pietro had run out of patience. As Wanda spoke, he unplugged everything in speed time. He returned back to his spot, arms crossed. “No, no. Go on. You were saying?” He offered.
Everything snapped back into speed time without him even trying. Pietro watched with some surprise as a bullet floated past him, going up. He just had time to brace himself before he felt the floor crack.
“Pietro!” He heard Wanda scream as he fell.
He looked up to see the Archer. “What? You didn’t see that coming?” He asked, face smug.
Pietro couldn’t see anything as he got back up, but he heard everything.
“Go ahead, piss me off.” That threat came from Banner, shortly followed by a flash of bright light and the crackling of lightning. He heard the crash of glass, and realized they had all moved into a different room. He rushed to Wanda’s side.
“I’m sorry, that was...odd.” The android said. “Thank you.”
“Thor, you helped create this?” Steve asked in confusion.
“I’ve had a vision. A whirlpool that sucks in all hope of life and at its center is that.” Thor explained.
“What, the gem?” Banner asked in confusion.
“It’s the Mind Stone. It’s one of the six Infinity Stones, the greatest power in the universe, unparalleled in its destructive capabilities.” Thor said.
“Then why would you bring it to-” Once again, Steve was cut off.
“Because Stark is right.” Thor said this as if it was within reason.
“Oh, it’s definitely the end times.” Banner said what everyone was thinking.
“The Avengers cannot defeat Ultron.” Thor reasoned.
“Not alone.” The android spoke again.
“Why does your ‘vision’ sound like JARVIS?” Steve asked.
Pietro had no idea who that was, but assumed they weren’t around anymore. “We...we reconfigured JARVIS’ matrix to create something new.” Tony tried to put it into words. Pietro almost groaned. This “Vision” was another AI made by Stark.
“I think I’ve had my fill of new.” Steve said in frustration.
“You think I’m a child of Ultron?” Vision spoke again, with the same tones of attempted emotion Ultron used to use.
“You’re not?” Steve was shocked.
“I’m not Ultron. I’m not JARVIS. I am...I am.” He looked unsure what to say, which Pietro still doubted considering he was an android, but brushed it off.
Wanda spoke suddenly. “I looked in your head and saw annihilation.” Her voice was cold, but Pietro knew she was more afraid than angry.
“Look again.” Vision’s reply was blunt yet seemed hopeful towards her.
“Yeah, her seal of approval means jack to me.” The archer spoke up now, sarcastic. Pietro narrowed his eyes.
“Their powers, the horrors in our heads, Ultron himself, they all came from the Mind Stone, and they’re nothing compared to what it can unleash. But with it on our side-” Thor tried reasoning again.
This time, it was Steve who cut someone else off. “Is it?” He asked. “Are you? On our side?”
“I don’t think it’s that simple.” Vision replied, shrugged slightly.
“Well it better get real simple real soon.” For once, Pietro agreed with the archer.
“I am on the side of life.” He tried. “Ultron isn’t, he will end it all.”
“What’s he waiting for?” Stark asked.
“You.” Vision’s response was simple.
“Where?” Banner spoke again.
“Sokovia. He’s got Nat there too.” The archer answered.
“If we’re wrong about you, if you’re the monster that Ultron made you to be…” Banner trailed off, thinking his threat was clear.
The android looked confused. “What will you do?” He blinked in what must have been realization. “I don’t want to kill Ultron. He’s unique, and he’s in pain. But that pain will roll over the earth, so he must be destroyed. Every form he’s built, every trace of his presence on the net, we have to act now. And not one of us can do it without the others. Maybe I am a monster. I don’t think I’d know if I were one. I’m not what you are, and not what you intended. So there may be no way to make you trust me. But we need to go.” With that, he picked up Thor’s hammer and handed it to him.
Judging by the shock in the room, Pietro could assume that was important. He thought back to when he had tried to grab the hammer out of midair, and it had dragged him along. Yeah, it was probably pretty important.
“Well done.” Thor said to break the silence, patting Stark on the shoulder as he walked off.
Steve came back to his senses next. “Three minutes. Get what you need.”
Steve led the twins to a storage room full of random supplies and outfits. Pietro immediately headed over to the shelf of shoes, pulling out a white pair with green detailing in his size. He searched through the closet, and found himself a blue shirt with grey detail. He pulled it on over his head, excited to have his own uniform. He glanced at the communication device skeptically for a moment, having never used one before, but then shrugged. He was part of the team now.
Aren't you going to wear something cool? He asked Wanda.
Not a chance. She warned.
He just smiled, and pulled out a red leather coat, tossing it at her.
Within the three minutes that had been set, the twins were waiting back on the Quinjet.
At exactly three minutes, Steve came in and did a debriefing. “Ultron knows we're coming. Odds are we'll be riding into heavy fire, and that's what we signed up for. But the people of Sokovia, they didn't. So our priority is getting them out.” He looked at the twins. Pietro nodded to him, he and Wanda could get it done fast. “All they want is to live their lives in peace, and that's not going to happen today. But we can do our best to protect them. And we can get the job done, and find out what Ultron’s been building. We find Romanoff, and we clear the field. Keep the fight between us. Ultron thinks we're monsters and we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him. It's about whether he's right.”
Everyone nodded, and together, the Quinjet continued its course and flew toward Sokovia. Pietro spent the flight in silence, staring out the window and watching the clouds go by. With the speed of the Quinjet, the flight only took thirty minutes. Pietro guessed that everyone, however, not just a speedster like him, felt like it took years. When the city came into view, Pietro started to feel a nervous and foreboding feeling, but there was no time to turn back.
The moment they landed, Pietro raced to the police station. “We're under attack!” He shouted. “Clear the city, now!” He rushed out to go and evacuate others, but realizing he heard no sirens behind him, had to turn back again. He grabbed a shotgun out of an officer's hands and fired into the air, letting his impatience show. “Get off your asses.” He said in annoyance as they looked around in surprise and confusion.
Once Pietro knew the police had started evacuating the people, he raced around the city, encouraging people to get going, and helping those who couldn't get away fast enough.
He stopped, seeing the army of robots approaching. Pietro tilted his head to the side, cracking his neck. With a smile, he ran, and began tearing the bots apart. This time, the transition into speed time was smooth, and he barely even noticed it. He pulled the robots apart any way he could, tearing out internal pieces and knocking off their heads.
Pietro ran until he was nearing the outskirts of Sokovia, when suddenly, he tripped. He heard the explosions go off, and then above all that, Ultron. He got up, and looked around in frustration and confusion as he heard Ultron’s speech.
“Do you see? The beauty of it, the inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor, my swift and terrible sword and the earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers, turn my own flesh against me. It means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world, will be metal.”
Pietro nearly fell as the earth shook around him. He managed to catch his balance and backed away from the edge as it lifted into the air. The moment Ultron finished, he raced away again, ripping apart more robots, this time fueled by anger.
“Cap, you got incoming.” He heard Stark say over comms.
“Incoming already came in.” An exhausted Steve responded on the other line. Pietro raced to a nearby wall, leaning against it trying to catch his breath. “Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job: tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt ‘em back. You get killed, walk it off.” Pietro sighed, and took a deep breath before rushing away again.
Pietro. Pietro I can’t do this. Wanda’s panic came to him through the chaos.
Yes you can. You have to do this. We have to do this. He reassured.
No, I can’t, we can’t save them! After that, her voice was gone.
Pietro began to run, following the last trace of her emotion. He heard Clint’s voice, full of surprise. “Alright, we’re all clear here.” He reported.
“We are not clear! We are very not clear!” Steve shouted in a rush.
“Alright coming to you.” Barton responded.
Pietro just caught up to them then, and lifted Wanda into the air, racing off with her. “Keep up old man!” He shouted with a laugh as he ran.
He dropped her in front of the robots, and began to run toward them himself when he felt a piercing feeling in his arm. He looked at it to see a bullet wound, and turned to the police, giving them a look of annoyance.
“The next wave’s gonna hit any minute.” Steve reported. “What have you got, Stark?”
“Well, nothing great.” Stark said decidedly. “Maybe a way to blow up the city. That’ll keep it from impacting the surface if you guys can get clear.
“I asked for a solution, not an escape plan.” Steve demanded.
“Impact radius is getting bigger every second. We’re going to have to make a choice.” Pietro clenched his fists in frustration, he wasn’t about to let his people die.
He suddenly heard the whirring of an engine, and raced toward the edge of the city. He stood by Steve and Romanoff’s side and watched as a S.H.I.E.L.D Helicarrier flew up to meet them. The sight was incredible and impossible to put into words.
“Fury, you son of a bitch.” Steve said with a laugh.
The sides of the Helicarrier opened with a low rumble, and several smaller ships flew out, landing in various places around the city.
“This is S.H.I.E.L.D?” Pietro asked in shock.
“This is what S.H.I.E.L.D’s supposed to be.” Steve responded, smiling at Pietro.
“This is not so bad.” He replied with a grin.
“Let’s load ‘em up.” Steve said, returning to the mission at hand. Pietro nodded, and rushed around, directing everyone in sight onto the lifeboats. He carried small children, and held the hands of the elderly, and translated any instructions into Sokovian.
“Thor, I got a plan!” Stark called out.
“We’re out of time. They’re coming for the core.” Thor replied.
“Rhodey, get the rest of the people on board that carrier.” Stark instructed.
“On it.” He heard a new voice come over comms.
“Avengers,” Stark continued. “Time to work for a living.”
Pietro rushed to the church, and immediately went to check on Wanda. “You good?” He muttered the question.
“Yeah.” She replied quietly, and nodded up at him.
“Romanoff?” Stark came over comms again. “You and Banner better not be playing ‘hide the zucchini’”
“Relax, Shell-head.” Romanoff said as she joined them, followed shortly by the Hulk. “Not all of us can fly. What’s the drill?”
“This is the drill.” Stark relayed. “If Ultron gets a hand on the core, we lose.”
As it always ways with Ultron and impeccable timing, the robot took this moment to show up. Pietro glared at him, and moved into a better position to protect Wanda.
“Is that the best you can do?” Thor taunted, shouting at Ultron.
Pietro sighed, and used all his willpower in an effort not to facepalm as thousands of robots rushed up behind Ultron. He was shocked though, as he had never realized Ultron made this many copies of himself.
“You had to ask.” Steve sighed sarcastically.
“This is the best I can do.” Ultron announced. “This is exactly what I wanted. All of you, against all of me. How could you possibly hope to stop me?”
“Well, like the old man said,” Stark spoke up. “Together.”
With that, the Hulk roared, and the bots attacked.
It was a wave of madness, they crawled flew and ran in at every corner, filling everything with the sound of clanking metal and the sight of silver. Pietro took a deep breath, and fell into speed time, racing around the core to form a perimeter. He ducked under blasts from both friend and enemies, and tore and kicked at robots coming from all angles. He was out of breath, but Pietro kept running anyway, knowing that this was the moment they’d built up to, and he was an invaluable piece of it. At one point he broke his perimeter circle, jumping over the core to tackle a robot coming at it from the other side. The rush of adrenaline was fueling him, and his rage toward Ultron for manipulating him and Wanda helped as well.
He only stopped when he heard Ultron speak again. “You know, with the benefit of hindsight-” Pietro had to jump to the side as the Hulk ran past him, and punched Ultron, sending him spinning into the air before he ever finished that thought.
All of the robots turned at the Hulk’s roar, and began to fly toward the edge of the city. “They’re trying to leave the city.” Thor reported.
“We can’t let ‘em.” Stark instructed. “Not even one. Rhodey!”
Vision leapt off to go cut them off, and Pietro turned his focus to Steve, who had begun to speak. “We gotta move out. Even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats, I’ll sweep for stragglers, be right behind you.”
“What about the core?” Barton reminded them.
“I’ll protect it.” Wanda offered. “It’s my job.” Everyone nodded and ran off, but Pietro stayed, worried for his sister. “Get the people on the boats.” She instructed him.
“I’m not going to leave you here.” He insisted, biting the inside of his lip nervously. He couldn’t bear to lose her.
“I can handle this.” She reassured him, and lifted a hand to destroy an approaching robot. “Come back for me when everyone else is off, not before.”
“Hmm.” Pietro mused, looking at her with pride. She had grown up throughout this journey, and as much as it made him happy, he did miss being her big brother.
“You understand?” Wanda asked, clearly wondering why he was stalling.
“You know, I’m twelve minutes older than you,” was all he decided to say.
She chuckled and then sent him off. “Go.”
Pietro could have used his speed, but the weight of what they were about to do made him slow down and walk back through the streets of Sokovia. The Avengers’ reports were a mindless background noise as he lost himself in the city. He looked at the buildings, crumbling to dust, and the metal pieces lying scattered on the ground, a reminder of what caused this. He thought back to how his need for justice had blinded him from seeing who truly deserved it.
The moment he got to the bridge, Pietro froze in his tracks. He didn’t even register his return to speed time as he watched the Quinjet firing bullets right toward Barton, who was carrying a small child in his arms. He didn’t even think as he realized that a gun like that would have exit wounds, he couldn’t just move something in front of Barton, it would pierce through. He didn’t hear Wanda screaming in his mind for him to stop, didn’t even realize he had apologized to her. Pietro just ran. He ran, threw a car up in front of Barton and then felt a piercing feeling, followed shortly by cold black numbness. He felt dust invading his every breath, and knew he was dripping blood but couldn’t feel anything. He felt his heart pounding faster and faster, trying to fix this, trying to keep him alive. The last thing he registered was Barton, and the sound of Wanda’s screams, followed by nothing, just cool black.
“You didn’t see that coming.”