conquer • wanda maximoff

「 FOUR 」

CHAPTER FOUR ; I KNOW PLACES

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"ALL OUR WORK is gone. Ultron's cleared out, used the Internet as an escape hatch," Bruce informed the room.

"Ultron," Steve muttered.

"He's been in everything. Files, surveillance. Probably knows more about us than we know about each other," Natasha told the group.

Ayana shifted uncomfortably from where she stood in the corner of Stark's lab. Natasha had helped treat the wound on her head, but it still stung painfully, and it was going to take some work to scrub the blood from her hair and borrowed dress.

"He's in your files, he's in the Internet. What if he decides to access something a little more exciting?" Rhodey spoke up.

"Nuclear codes," Maria realized. She was nursing her foot, which she'd injured in the fight.

"Nuclear codes. Listen, we need to make some calls, assuming we still can," said Rhodey.

"Nukes? He said he wanted us dead," Natasha frowned.

"He didn't say dead. He said extinct," Steve sighed.

"He also said he killed somebody," Clint spoke up. Ayana shook her head, sighing.

"But there was nobody else in the building," Maria said, confused.

"Yes there was," Tony said, speaking for the first time. He pulled a small device which resembled a phone out of his pocket and tapped it in the air.

A golden-yellow, holographic sphere which Ayana figured was JARVIS' consciousness appeared before the group. But there was something wrong with it; it kept flickering and glitching in places, looking broken.

"This is insane," said Bruce, who had stepped forward to examine JARVIS' mainframe in more detail.

"JARVIS was the first line of defense. He would have shut Ultron down, it makes sense," Steve said.

"No, Ultron could've assimilated Jarvis. This isn't strategy, this is...rage."

Seemingly from nowhere, Thor strode into the room, his red cape and battle armor on, clutching Mjölnir in one hand. With the other he grabbed Tony by the neck and lifted him into the air, the billionaire gripping Thor's hand with a look of fright on his face. Ayana raised an eyebrow, watching the situation play out.

"It's going around," Clint murmured.

"Come on, use your words buddy," Tony said in a feeble attempt to calm Thor down.

"I have more than enough words to describe you, Stark," Thor told him in a dangerously calm voice.

"Thor! The legionnaire," said Steve, an expression of authority on his face.

Thor reluctantly let Tony go, glaring at him as he stumbled away, massaging his neck.

"Trail went cold about a hundred miles out but it's headed north, and it has the scepter. Now we have to retrieve it. Again."