An Age of Metal

Off The Rails

Peggy was immediately put on edge by the twin's arrival. She had no reason to trust them besides the fact that now seemed to see Ultron for what he really was. A monster. A mistake. Charlotte, trembling after being knocked down, still smiled through her mask. She had been right about the twins. They weren't bad after all, just angry and confused. Peggy nodded courtly at them before turning back to Steve. 

"We need to stop this thing!" She spoke above the squeaky sound of the train wheels. Steve nodded in agreement, but they both knew the more present problem: the train was off tracks in a heavily populated area. They didn't need anymore collateral damage, especially in a foreign country.   

"Civilians in our path," Steve said to Pietro.

Without any further explanation, Pietro knew what he had to do. He was gone in an instant, practically flying off the steps and onto the street. 

He ran in front of the speeding train through the crowded streets and busy vendor stands. If someone was in the path of the moving mass of steel, he would push them aside or move them out of the way. It wasn't gentle, but it was effective. All the bystanders ever saw was a blue blur or a glimpse of the white haired boy. 

Peggy had started ordering the civilians on the train into the back of the cabin, where debris wouldn't strike so hard and they'd be safer. No one could even try to refuse her commands; her voice was too loud and her appearance too stately and strong. 

"Move along, everyone! That's it!"  She called out. 

Steve managed to tear his eyes away from Peggy. They settled on Wanda, he hands still glowing with red magic.  

"Can you stop this thing?" He asked her. 

"I can try," she replied, the glow intensifying. 

Steve faced Charlotte, now not as fidgety. 

"Can you help her?" He questioned. 

Charlotte nodded. 

"If I can use the wires..." she trailed off. 

Wanda yelled with the strain of her powers as they wrapped around the wheels. Her face was scrunched up in concentration as she willed them to stop moving. 

Charlotte's hands shook as she forced telephone wires to move, and cables to erupt from the ground. They acted like giant snakes, twisting around the train in an effort to stop the moving.  With their combined efforts, the train soon grinded to a halt. 

The civilians aboard were relatively unharmed, and they clung to friends as they fled the scene as fast as their legs could carry them. A small crowd had formed, observing the train and peering over each other to see if some of The Avengers were really there.     

Wanda rushed off the train to her brother, who sat on the ground out of breath. Wanda hovered over the exhausted Pietro, trying to see if he was alright.    

"I'm fine," he said between breaths. "I just need to take a minute."

"I'm very tempted not to give you one," Steve said, flanked by Peggy. He towered over the Maximoffs. 

"The Cradle. Did you get it?" Wanda asked, frantic. 

"Yup," Charlotte answered. "It's on the quinjet with Hawkeye."

She looked pointedly at Pietro when she mentioned Clint. 

"Stark will take care of it," Steve answered. 

"No, he won't," Wanda said. 

"I know you two hate him, but the Cradle is safe with Tony," Peggy told the two.   

"Peg's right," Steve added. "You don't know what you're talking about. Stark's not crazy."

"He will do anything," Wanda continued. "To make things right."

Steve pressed his earpiece and turned away from Wanda.

"Stark, come in. Stark," he spoke. "Anyone on comms?" 

No response. 

"Ultron can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it," Wanda explained.  "Where do you think he gets that?" 

As soon as the implications of what Wanda said settled in, the group took off to find the quinjet.

Charlotte slipped Pietro energy bar that she had kept in her pocket. 

"I read that you had fast metabolism, so you need to eat a lot. Especially after exercising," she explained. "And I always keep some of those on me on a mission, so I promised it's not, like, poisoned or anything."

Pietro was floored by her kindness. No one had been nice to him or Wanda 'just because' in a long time. He supposed she meant it as a peace offering after what they did to them. 

"Thank you," he said. 

She grinned.  

"You're welcome."