Saving Grace

Thirty Seven

Now, in the lab with all the broken Iron Legion bots, everyone but Thor stands around, looking grave — even Grace. She left Savior open in the corner after helping them clean up the party area. Tony never even thought to send her upstairs — or he just didn't think he needed to. She was in the fight, after all.

"All our work is gone," Bruce says, looking at it all. "Ultron cleared out, used the internet as an escape hatch."

"Ultron," Steve mutters, almost bitterly.

"He's been in everything," Nat says. "Files, surveillance. Probably knows more about us than we know about each other."

Tony looks at Grace, trying to think about how much he could possibly know about her. He's been careful thus far in regards to her info. The most recent picture of her out there is from when she was eleven. She looks so different now.

So... grown up.

Rhodey steps forward, holding his injured arm and bringing Tony back to the conversation. "If he's in your files, he's in the internet. What if he decides to access something a little more exciting?"

"Nuclear codes," Maria adds while picking broken glass out of the bottoms of her feet.

Rhodey sighs, then looks at Tony. "Look, we need to make some calls — assuming we still can."

"Nukes?" Nat asks, ignoring him. "He said he wanted us dead."

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

Clint adds, "He also said he killed somebody."

Maria's brows furrow. "But there wasn't anyone else in the building."

Tony sighs. "Yes, there was." Grace already knows who it is before he brings up the damaged image of Jarvis.

Everyone goes quiet. A few tears slip out of Grace's eyes. Bruce walks towards the image in disbelief. "This is insane."

Steve shrugs. "Jarvis was the first line of defense. He would've shut Ultron down, it makes sense."

"No," Grace says, wiping her eyes when everyone looks at her. But she knows Steve is wrong based on that destroyed image, on everything her father's taught her about technology — about Jarvis. "Ultron could've assimilated Jarvis," she says. "This isn't strategy, this is... rage." She whispers the last part, feeling like she's lost a family member.

And then Thor strides in, heading straight for Tony. He grabs him by the throat and lifts him, walking back towards the wall.

"Stop it!" Grace immediately shouts — practically shrieks — as she moves towards them. Thor listens, looking over at her and the distressed look on her face.

"Use your words, buddy," Tony chokes out.

"I have more than enough words to describe you, Stark," Thor replies, but he lets him go anyway.

"The Legionnaire," Steve says, reminding him of his task to track the suit that got away with Loki's scepter.

Thor sighs. "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."

"I tried to stop it," Grace mutters, chewing her lip. Despite all she did, she didn't get the scepter, and she didn't stop Ultron. It was a failure in her eyes.

"In a way, we all did," Rhodey says. "And we all failed. Don't put this all on you."

"Alright, then, I'll put it on Steve," Grace replies jokingly, trying to ease the tension. "Don't just jump onto things all willy nilly. I almost had a shot at it."