Flower - Marvel Fanfiction

Thirty-Five

V A L E R I A N

Elena's boots clacked against the concrete ground. Her hands were stuffed in her coat pocket, gripping onto her penny. It had become a good luck charm for her, and it was always in her pocket. Beside her, Natasha and Clint walked. They already had their weapons drawn, ready to attack in a split second. Steve and Thor had gone around the back, and Tony was flying above. They had all agreed that Bruce should stay out of the battle. The Hulk would cause too many uncertain variables that they didn't have the answer to. So instead, he stayed behind in the car where he would be at a safe distance to monitor. And if there was ever the need for him to take action, he was close enough to help.

Elena drew in a deep breath. Her vambraces were secure around her wrist, and the buzzing of electricity was constant in her ears. Unlike her past endeavors, she was properly armed. Knives were hidden within her vambraces and at several other spots on her body, and a collapsible bow was with the quiver of arrows on her hip.

Clenching her jaw, Elena bit down on her tongue to stop her trembling. She forced herself to keep her eyes open and at the ruins of the old lab. She needed to do this. She needed to stop Lieselotte once and for all, or die trying. Her fingers itched for action, and despite the long night of incessant pacing she had, her body was fully alert. It took all of her energy to stop herself from running. Both towards the lab and to Lieselotte and away as far as possible.

Elena gulped, letting out a shaky breath. She tilted her head up to peer at the top of the ruined building, her step faltering. She blinked when Clint laid a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it. Nodding at him and Natasha, she continued walking.

The outside of the lab may have been standing with some cracks here and there, but the inside was a mess. Rubble was piled up like books piled up in libraries, and it was a wonder how so few support beams held up the building. It reminded Elena too much of Will's apartment.

Except the lab may have been in worse condition. It didn't have Will to care for it, after all.

A pang hit Elena's chest, and she shuddered. She walked slowly, and her heels echoed. The building may as well collapse right there with all the disturbance, but Elena didn't care. As long as Lieselotte was brought down, she would be okay with it.

The look Natasha sent her erased those thoughts. She gulped and nodded. Change, she reminded herself. She was reframing. The Avengers were here with her this time, and they didn't deserve to die. Not yet anyways.

Lieselotte was waiting for them in the very room the experiment was held. The ground was littered with broken glass and stone, and if you looked closely, thousands of dollars had been lost for all the broken equipment.

Sunlight filtered in through the broken roof. Elena took the first step inside, and the shingles that used to cover the hole above them cracked beneath her feet. She could feel Lieselotte's eyes on hers.

This was the person who had cursed her all these years. She had haunted her footsteps like a phantom and slithered into her thoughts like a worm. She was the one who started everything.

And yet, Lieselotte was also the one who painted all the pictures in Will's apartment. She was the neglected child, wearing a facade for the sake of her younger brother. She was a sister, and a good one too.

She was an angel changed. A devil that had fallen to the deepest and darkest depths. She had gone to a place too far to be followed. Will had confirmed that for Elena with his explanations and endless apologies. And Lieselotte had proved it when she fired the gun.

Dark figures popped out of their corners as Natasha and Clint stepped in behind Elena. Elena had no eyes for them, and Lieselotte didn't seem to either.

It was finally time. The final battle.

"Good luck," Elena said, squeezing her penny for a second longer before unsheathing her knives.

"Keep your luck," Lieselotte spat. "You're going to need it."

She didn't even finish her sentence when she leapt at Elena. Raising her arms, Elena barely blocked the daggers in time. She pushed back against Lieselotte, who ducked to the side. Elena barreled onto the ground when Lieselotte sent her flying with a blow. She grinded her teeth together.

Elena pulled herself from the ground and jumped on Lieselotte. Sweat was already pouring from her forehead like waterfalls. She slammed her shoulder into Lieselotte's. Thrusting her knife forward, Elena yelped when she ducked and sweeped her feet out from underneath her.

Elena didn't waste any time when she landed on her behind. She rolled to the side before Lieselotte could stab her, scrambling onto her feet. She ran forward, swinging her knife. They were matched evenly for what seemed like a long while, but then a gunshot sounded.

Gasping, Elena's eyes widened. She could barely sense the gun in Lieselotte's hands. But without her full sight, she couldn't tell if she had been hit or if Lieselotte had missed. She hoped it was the former.

Her back slammed against a wall, and Elena was snapped back to attention. She ducked down her head as Lieselotte attempted to punch her. Elena kneed her in the ribs, and Lieselotte fell onto the ground.

Feeling lighthearted, Elena yelled a curse. She stumbled forward, landing on her knees. Elena pinned Lieselotte down, shooting a hand out to press against her neck at the vagus nerve. She passed out, and Elena huffed in a mix of relief and dread.

Because all there was left to do was kill her.

Hesitating, Elena swallowed on her spit. Her grip on her knife loosened, and she closed her eyes. Before the battle, she was already willing to kill despite the oaths she took to become a doctor. But that was her thinking Lieselotte would be awake. Which she wasn't.

Heiyue would have killed her with no doubt. Dr. Fan may have done it for all the things that had been taken from her.

But Elena wasn't sure if she could anymore. She dropped the knife, letting it clatter to the ground. She fell onto her back and sighed.

Blood was sticky on her hands. No matter where she tried to wipe it away, there was always more. Was it her own?

She let her hands rub around her body, and she closed her eyes when her fingers traced over a hole in her stomach. Electricity buzzed in her ear. So Lieselotte had managed to shoot her, after all.

The sounds of the battle were dying down, and from the voices, Elena knew that they had won. She tried to smile, gazing up at the fluffy clouds that passed by. She imagined the blue color of the sky, the very same color of Will's eyes. She heard the lapping ocean waves in her ears, and it overpowered the electricity. Even her vambraces were failing.

But before she let herself go, the vambraces gave one last signal. Bruce had said something into his mouthpiece, sending a message. It sounded frantic, but that wasn't what she noticed though. Elena sat up so fast she almost threw up. Explosions rang in her ear, and the lab finally collapsed. It had been rigged with explosives.

She sensed the controller in Lieselotte's hands, her thumb over the trigger.

Elena's mouth went dry, and she was buried underneath the last of the roof. The weight was unbearable with the wound in her stomach, but at least, Lieselotte would be beside her facing the same end.

It was over.

...

IT IS OVER. IT IS FINALLY OVER. OH MY GOD I'M FREAKING OUT AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! i legit also just finished the epilogue like ten minutes ago so expect that whenever i wake up. 

*jumps face first into bed* 

*incoherent screaming*