I feel like you can tell that I've been reading by how I described things this chapter. It's crazy what a book can do to improve your writing.
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"Ultron thinks we're monsters. That we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him, it's about whether he's right."
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Heavy breaths filled Astrilde's ears, only slightly muffled by the lone communication device that had been stuffed half-heartedly into her ear. Joining the fatigued breaths was the sound of pounding- her heart. Those two responses from her body was enough to warn her that even Asgardians could become winded, if they were pushing themselves hard enough. Ultron thinks we're monsters... The wise words Steve had said in the quinjet as they headed to battle were clear even now. They pushed her to increase her already dangerous speed, weaving through innocent Sokovians left and right as they fled from their city. From their home.
Astrilde had witnessed such a sight before, but it was heartbreaking nevertheless. Yet, this time the destruction was not caused from the thing she oh so loathed. Love wasn't the perpetrator. Not today, and hopefully not soon. The slight comfort of knowing the emotion was not the cause filled her heart, but she disgustedly pushed it away. Comfort wasn't something you should find on a soon-to-be battlefield, and she wasn't about to break that unspoken rule. Plus, love hadn't saved past civilizations, so why start accepting it now?
But, I could accept it. That thought was heavy, yet strangely freeing. She felt a new burst of energy fill her body, which caused her uncomfortably fast pace to pick up. The control she possessed with the speed was slightly overwhelming, sending flashbacks of days she had run in the forests of Asgard. A small smile weaved itself onto her face, despite her attempts to repress it.
Unfortunately, that smile was easily quenched when a robot appeared in front of her. She barely had time to grab her sword before she came in contact with the robot. Her destination, the heat of the city, would have to wait. The newly sharpened metal of the sword sliced straight through Ultron's clone, wires crackling at the disconnection.
Really, she was thankful for the unexpected robot, because otherwise her speed would have not slowed. That would have been a nasty fall when the ground rumbled beneath her feet as it did now. A bad feeling slithered up her spine, and she could feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand. Still, she kept moving, her pace slightly slowed and her steps more thought out.
Clones appeared left and right. Metal met metal as her sword hit it's mark, but there were enough clones around for Ultron's voice to start echoing through the city. "Do you see? The beauty of it. The inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor. My swift and terrible storm 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."
