Trust goes two ways | N. Romanoff *discontinued*

| eight |

Chaos reigned as Ultron's legionnaire bots swarmed like a metallic plague. Amidst the rubble and ruined streets, Lexi stood her ground. Her eyes flickered with determination as she surveyed the onslaught of metal legionnaires closing in on her.

With a swift motion, Lexi summoned several knives from her belt, each floating effortlessly in the air around her. Her mind crackled with energy as she focused, honing her abilities to their fullest potential.

As the legionnaire bots charged, Lexi sprang into action. With a flick of her wrist, the knives whirled through the air, slicing through the metal with deadly precision. She danced amidst the chaos, her movements fluid and calculated as she took out the legionnaires one by one.

But the legionnaires were relentless, their numbers seeming endless. Lexi gritted her teeth, her concentration unwavering as she fought to hold them back, doing everything she could to protect the core. Desperate to gain an advantage, she reached out with her mind, seizing anything within her grasp to use as a weapon.

Metal beams, shattered concrete, even abandoned vehicles—all became extensions of her will as she hurled them at the advancing horde. The air crackled with energy as her onslaught continued, each blow striking true against her metallic adversaries.

Nat stood flipped her way over to Lexi, looking at the flattened legionnaires as Lexi caught her breath, exhaustion threatening to take over her body. "Didn't know you could do that," Natasha quipped with a nod of her head.

"Neither did I," Lexi panted, gritting her teeth as another wave of legionnaires appeared, running towards them. Grunting, Lexi readied herself, unsure if she would be able to do the same again. She didn't need to, however, as Thor threw his hammer from behind, bouncing it off each and every legionnaire before it flew back into his hand.

"You are welcome, tiny Stark," he spoke before going back to protect the core. Lexi stared at him in disbelief, Natasha laughing quietly beside her.

"Seriously?" Lexi huffed.

The rest of the group took care of the final legionnaires, leaving Ultron alone as he tussled with Vision, the two wrestling in the air above the core. Vision suddenly sent a beam from the stone in his head, forcing Ultron back outside the ruins. Thor joined in as he sent a bolt of lighting from his hammer, Tony doing the same with his Iron Man suit.

Ultron struggled against the power of the three beams, his metal body falling to pieces as he slipped further from the core. He crumbled under the strength of the beams, the three ceasing their attack as he could no longer fight back.

"You know, with the benefit of hindsight..." Ultron croaked, not being given a chance to finish as the Hulk punched him, sending him hurtling through the sky, his figure disappearing in the distance. Hulk turned around to the other stray legionnaires that were approaching, all of them scurrying away from his reach as he chased after them with a roar.

"They're trying to leave the city," Thor stated as all of the legionnaires they were fighting began running away.

"We can't let 'em, not even one," Tony stated. "Rhodey."

"We gotta get out," Steve instructed, addressing the group. "even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats. I'll sweep for stragglers. Be right behind you."

"Ooh! I'm a super soldier," Lexi interjected, waving her hands about and making a face at Steve who raised his eyebrows at her, an amused smile on his face.

"What about the core?" Clint asked.

"I'll protect it," Wanda stated, turning to look at Clint who was giving her an incredulous look. "It's my job."