Four stone walls surrounded Ira Alabaster. The windows into the cells of Pietro and Wanda Maximoff were the only connection Ira had to her friends, the only thing that  was keeping her sane. She knew she had signed up for this when she volunteered for Hydra's experiments. But she didn't know how difficult it would be.

Wanda and Pietro were Ira's closest friends. Granted, there weren't that many options, but she loved them both dearly. They had become friends due to their shared circumstances.

Currently, Ira was experimenting with her powers. She sent a small stream of midnight blue energy at the wall. It bounced off the wall and struck the ground, dissipating. She lifted a small chunk of stone into the air. She concentrated on it, and it burst into a fine powder.

Pietro peered into her window. "When is the new recruit getting out of Recovery?" He asked her.

"Any minute now," Ira replied. "Her name is Emilia Crucil. She can inflict pain with a single thought."

Emilia would be the first successful experiment since the twins. Most of the subjects either died, or went insane. The Maximoff twins had been the first successful experiment in a while. That's why they were so important to Strucker. Before the twins, there were more failed experiments before Ira. But she had survived, and had gotten the powers of telekinesis, energy manipulation, and healing.

Wanda raised her eyebrows at the mention of Emilia's powers. "I guess Strucker's really increasing the dangerousness with these recent experiments."

Ira nodded. "In most of these recent experiments, there have been more and more dangerous powers. The last one was a pyro-kinetic with the ability to control lightening. Strucker's trying to create an army. A powerful one."

"Speak of the devil," Pietro muttered as Strucker appeared out side their cells. He unlocked the doors and allowed each Enhanced to step out. At his side was a girl with long dark blonde hair and hazel eyes, presumably Emilia. Ira's eyes narrowed slightly as she took in Emilia's appearance. Something about her just seemed untrustworthy. Her eyes scanned each of them, as if looking for any sign of weakness. A confident smirk was plastered on her lips. She was wearing a black leather jacket with a white shirt, and leggings.

"Pupils, this is Emilia," Strucker began. "She is the most powerful Enhanced ever, and she will help us take down the Avengers," he sneered. "She will be moving into the cell next to Wanda. And Emilia?" He looked pointedly at her. "Try not to kill them. We need our pupils in top fighting shape."

"No promises," Emilia smirked as Strucker left. The guard in front of their cells guided them back in, and locked the doors. He stood sentry outside their cells to prevent them from escaping.

"So Emilia," Ira began, "How did you end up here?"

"Not that it's any of your business, but I volunteered to be experimented on." Emilia stated.

"Well, we all volunteered, but why did you volunteer?" Pietro cut in.

Emilia rolled her eyes, and stayed quiet.

"Not a talker," Pietro muttered, and put his hands up.

"It's not that," Emilia shot back. "I just don't think it's any of your business why I joined. If you must know, it was because of my parents. They died."

"I'm sorry," Ira said. "We all have difficult pasts, so we understand what you're going through."

"Yeah, well I don't want anyone's pity. I've been doing fine on my own." Emilia said. "When they died, I promised them I would find the Avengers and kill them as revenge. And I don't want any of you getting in my way. I'm more powerful than all of you combined, so don't test me."

Ira frowned, and brushed a strand of her wavy platinum hair away from her face. Emilia was very defensive. Before Ira could say anything, an alarm blared throughout the base. Report to your stations immediately. This is not a drill. We are under attack. We are under attack.

"What's happening?" Wanda asked as she stood up.

"I don't know," Ira responded. She too stood up. They heard a click as the doors were unlocked. They walked out of the cells into the main room. Ira watched as Wanda squeezed Pietro's hand, comforting her.

"Who gave the order to attack?" Strucker asked a soldier.

"Herr Strucker, it's the Avengers. They landed in the far woods; the perimeter guard panicked." The soldier responded.

"The Avengers?" Wanda whispered. She and Pietro looked at each other.

Strucker walked over to Dr. List. "They have to be after the scepter." He turned to the soldier. "Can we hold them?"

The soldier looked confused. "They're the Avengers," he said.

"Deploy the rest of the tanks," Strucker ordered.

"Yes, sir."

"Concentrate fire on the weak ones," Strucker instructed. "A hit can make them close ranks."

Strucker walked over to List. They spoke quickly and quietly, but it was enough for Ira to hear them. "Everything we've accomplished. We're on the verge of our greatest breakthrough."

"Then let's show them what we've accomplished," List spoke. "Send out the Enhanced."

Ira glanced at the others. They all looked anxious and confused.

"It's too soon." Strucker argued.

"It's what they signed up for," List admonished.

"My men can hold them," Strucker said. He turned to the soldiers. "We will not yield! The Americans sent their circus freaks to test us. We will send them back in bags. No surrender!" The cry was echoed back by the soldiers.

Strucker turned back to List. "I am going to surrender. You will delete everything. If we give the Avengers the weapons, they may not look to far into what we've been doing." While Strucker and List continued talking, Wanda looked at her brother.

"What should we do?" She asked.

"We fight. This is what we've trained to do." Pietro explained. "We can show them that we're ready."

Ira nodded, so did Emilia.

"Ira and I will go outside and fight. You stay here." Pietro said, looking at Emilia and Wanda. "You might need to protect Strucker." They nodded, and ran off.

Pietro grabbed Ira and ran her outside the base. He set her down. "Go," he told her, and sped away. Ira watched him run in front of a man with a bow and arrows, and catch the arrows in midair. She smiled, watching him use his powers, then ran off.

A man in a red and blue suit was throwing a large shield at a few of the soldiers. Ira targeted him. She sent a current of blue energy at him, which threw him off his feet. He landed in a crouch, and threw the shield at her. She used her powers to hurl it away, and it stuck in a tree. The man ran at her. She dodged, but he was quicker. He punched her in her side, and Ira felt her breath knocked out of her. She used her powers to throw him in the air, and into a tree.

The man grabbed his shield out of the tree, and was ready to throw it at her, when another man with long blonde hair came. Ira watched as they decimated a large number of Hydra soldiers. While their back were turned, she sent a stream of energy towards them, which threw them off their feet. The other man sent a bolt of electricity towards her using a large hammer, and it hit her in the leg.

The men left, and Pietro ran to Ira. "Are you okay?" He asked. She nodded.

"I'm fine," she said, and placed her hand on her wounded leg. She concentrated, and sent a current of energy towards the wound. The burn slowly healed, leaving a barely noticeable scar.

Pietro picked her up again, and ran into the base. They found Wanda and Emilia in a secret room, watching a man with short brown hair circle the scepter. "You're just going to let him take it?" He asked Wanda. She just smiled as the man summoned a red and gold metal hand, and grabbed the scepter.

Once the Avengers left, the Enhanced made their way to the town. They walked to the marketplace to plan their next move. "What should we do?" Wanda asked.

"We should keep going after the Avengers." Emilia suggested. Just then, a little boy ran up to them.

"There's a man in the church waiting for you!" He told them. Ira furrowed her eyebrows.

"Waiting for us?" She asked. The boy nodded.

A woman came up to them. "Costel! What did I tell you about running off?" She turned to them. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Ira told her as they walked away. She turned to the others. "What do you think that was?"

"I think we should go to the church," Emilia said.

"I agree," Wanda nodded. "The base is overrun, and then hours later someone asks for us specifically? It's too coincidental."

"It's decided, then." Pietro said, and sped towards the church.

"Hey!" Ira called after him. "We can't all be as fast as you!"

Pietro sped back, and they all made their way to the church at a pace they could all keep up with. Soon they found the church. It was a large, round, stone building with a domed roof that was partially collapsed. They entered it, and found it completely dark.

"Talk," Wanda commanded. "And if you're wasting our time..." She let the threat hang in the air.

"Did you know this church is in the exact center of the city? The elders decreed it so that everyone could be equally close to God. I like that. The geometry of belief." The man said. He was sitting in a chair in the center of the church, covered by a blanket. "You're wondering why you can't look inside my head." He told Wanda.

"Sometimes it's hard. But sooner or later every man shows himself." Wanda replied.

"Oh, I'm sure they do." The man stood up. He was not, in fact, a man, but a large metal robot with glowing red eyes. His head was large, and twisted, with two curled bars lower on the sides of his face. Ira stepped back, momentarily stunned. The others looked equally surprised. "But you needed something more than a man. That's why you let Stark take the scepter."

"I didn't expect." Wanda admitted. "But I saw Stark's fear, I knew it would control him, make him self-destruct."

"Believe me, I didn't want him to take it," Emilia said. "But I knew she had a plan." She nodded towards Wanda.

"Everyone creates the thing they dread," He said. "Men of peace create engines of war, invaders create avengers, people create... smaller people? Children!" He chuckled. "I lost the word there. Children. Designed to supplant them, to help them end."

"Is that why you've come? To end the Avengers? Wanda asked him.

"I've come to save the world. But also, yeah. We'll move out right away. This is a start, but there's something we need to begin the real work." He replied. He started walking out of the church.

"What should we call you?" Ira asked him.

He turned to face them. "Ultron."
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A/N:

First official chapter! I promise it will get more interesting. Until then,

I love you three thousand

-E l i z a b e t h