Together | Steve Rogers

8

The Avengers have an unexpected visitor. A dead man. The former director of S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself time. My contacts all say he's building something," Fury says as he makes himself a sandwich.

Lila runs over to the table to hand Natasha a drawing of a butterfly and Lauren a drawing of a rainbow.

" The amount of vibranium he made off with, I don't think it's just one thing," Fury continues.

" What about Ultron himself?", Steve asks as he leans against the doorway of the kitchen.

" He's easy to track. He's everywhere. The guy is multiplying faster than a Catholic rabbit. It still doesn't help us get an angle on any of his plans, though," Fury says.

" Is he still going after launch codes?", Tony asks as he throws darts at the board.

" Yes, he is. But he's not making any headway", Fury says.

" I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school on a dare", Tony says.

" Well, I contacted our friends at the Nexus about that", Fury says.

" Nexus?", Steve asks.

" It's the world internet hub in Olso. Every byte of data flows through there. Fastest access on Earth," Bruce explains.

" So, what did they say?", Clint asks.

" He's fixated on the missiles. But the codes are constantly being changed", Fury says.

" By whom?", Tony asks as Clint throws two darts at the board, making a bullseye.

"Parties unknown", Fury says.

"Do we have an ally?", Natasha asks.

"Ultron's got an enemy. That's not the same thing. Still, I'd pay folding money to know who it is", He says.

" I might need to visit Olso. Find our unknown", Tony says, popping his head out of the doorway between the dining room and the kitchen.

" Well, this is good times, boss, but I was kind of hoping when I saw you, you'd have more than that", Natasha says.

" I do. I have you. Back in the day, I had eyes everywhere. Ears, everywhere else. You kids had all the tech you could dream of. Here we all are, back on Earth, with nothing but our wit and our will to save the world. Ultron says the Avengers are the only thing between him and his mission. And whether or not he admits it, his mission is global destruction. All this, laid in a grave. So stand. Outwit the platinum bastard".

" Steve doesn't like that kind of talk," Lauren teases with a smirk.

" You know what, Stone?" Steve asks.

" So what does he want?" Fury asks.

" To become better," Lauren says.

"Better than us", Steve says.

" He keeps building bodies," Lauren says.

" Human bodies", He adds.

"The human form is inefficient. Biologically speaking, we're outmoded. But he keeps coming back to it," Tony says.

" When you two programmed him to protect to human race, you amazingly failed", Natasha says.

" They don't need to be protected. They need to evolve", Bruce says as he looks down at the butterfly painting Lila drew, "Ultron's going to evolve".

" How?" Fury asks.

" Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?"

That night, the Avengers rest. The next morning, it's time to get back to work.

"I'll take Natasha and Clint", Steve says to Tony as he puts his shield on his back.

" I'm coming with you," Lauren says as she steps between the two in her uniform.

" No. You should stay here and rest. You can teleport back to the tower when you're feeling okay," Steve says.

" Cap, no offense, but I'm stronger than you are," She says.

" Not when you don't sleep for 3 days," He says, " You need to rest."

" Not gonna happen," Lauren says as she crosses her arms.

Steve sighs and looks over at Tony.

" Don't look at me. She scares me," Tony says.

Steve looks back at Lauren.

" This isn't up for debate, Rogers," She says.

" We have a job to do. Strictly recon. I'll hit the Nexus. I'll join you as soon as I can", Tony says as they walk towards the door.

" If Ultron's really building a body...", Steve trails.

" He'll be more powerful than any of us. Maybe all of us", Tony says.

"  An android designed by a robot", Tony says.

" You know, I really miss the days when the weirdest thing science ever created was me", Steve says.

" I'll drop Banner off at the tower. You mind if I borrow Ms.Hill?", Fury asks as he puts on his blazer.

" She's all yours. Apparently", Tony says.

" What are you gonna do?", Steve asks.

" I don't know. Something dramatic, I hope", Fury says as he walks out of the door.