Vengeance [Avengers Fanfiction]

[Chapter 44]

[Tony]

    I glanced at Rogers as we flew towards Fycon City, darkness shrouding our quinjet. Steve stared bleakly at his boots, his cowl laying discarded next to him. Hawkeye and Black Widow also rode with us, the jet being flown by two agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Banner, Thor, Hill, Coulson, and Fury were on a separate jet.  The tone was somber, no one daring to speak a word for fear of perturbing the grave atmosphere.

    "Five minutes from our destination." Coulson's voice crackled dryly through the speaker, voice masked by static.

    Guilt gnawed at my stomach as my eyes flitted once more to the Captain, who was lost in his somber thoughts.

    Poor kid. He looks crushed. I sighed mentally, regretting what I had said to him earlier. It wasn't fair on him for me to take out my frustration and disappointment on him. We both felt the same way. I had promised myself that I would find a way to keep Quinn alive, protect her, and I did. Well, until she acted like it meant nothing to her and decided to literally walk to her death sentence, regardless.

    There was nothing I could do about it, and it was completely aggravating. I had grown up learning that nothing is truly broken, that everything can be fixed if you're smart enough to find a solution. Well, I thought that I had found a solution with the Indigo 49, but I was wrong. Nothing could save Quinn from her impending death.

    If I was being honest, I envied her. I was jealous of the girl who had everything stripped from her in the blink of an eye, her innocence tainted by her sister's blood. Jealous that she could stay so strong even in the face of death, that she was dauntless enough to laugh in the face of her personal demon, her father, as he tortured her. Quinn might not have had the most moral outlook on life-hell, she wanted to murder her own father-but she was still one of the few people who had an impact on me. For the better or for the worse, I didn't know.

    The jet touched down and Clint and Natasha gathered their weapons and stepped outside as I suited up, checking to make sure that my separate arc reactor for Quinn's aura was working and not going to burn me alive if it malfunctioned. Rogers rose from his seat slowly, shield clasped in his hand.

    I cleared my throat, and he spared me a tiny glance. "Rogers, about earlier..." 

    He shook his head stiffly. "Sorry about losing my temper, Stark. That wasn't fair on you." he muttered, striding past me.

    "Hey." I sighed, placing a heavy, metal clad hand on his shoulder. The Captain stiffened. "I shouldn't have said those things. I'm sorry. You...you might be the one who's affected the most by all of this, but you're not alone."

    Really, Tony? You're turning into a sap! a voice in my mind drawled snidely, but I swallowed my pride and ignored it.

    "Thank you, Tony." Steve rasped, nodding to me gratefully before departing from the quinjet. Taking a deep breath, I followed him.

    The town hall loomed on the horizon of the desolate street. Eerie, unnerving silence surrounded us, only broken by the slap of our feet against the pavement and the howls of demons, the horrendous cacophony increasing in volume the closer we were to our target.

    The building was dark, nearly blending into is gloomy backdrop. Gray, stone columns towered over the steps, unwelcoming bars warding us away. Thick curtains shrouded the windows and flitted every so often as if brushed by invisible wind.

    "The place is crawling with demons." Barton commented lowly, checking to make sure his gun was loaded with vibranium bullets and that all of his vibranium coated arrows were secure.