CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
❝ a one-way ticket ❞
RIGHT AFTER ASTER sent the distress call, Obsidian lunged at them, swinging his monstrous ax-like weapon in their direction. Tony thrust a metal arm up and his armor extended into a shield to deflect the hit.
Aster conjured a ball of sparkling energy in her palms and thrust it forward, knocking Obsidian back at a high speed. She was aiming for him to tumble right into Maw, though the alien flicked his hand to the side and re-routed Obsidian's flying body into a row of parked cars.
Behind them, Bruce was admiring their new suits and how well Aster had a grip on her powers. "Where'd that come from?!"
Tony turned around, gesturing between his and Aster's suits. "It's nano-tech. You like it? A little something—"
With a flick of his wrist, Maw sent Tony flying into the air. With his other hand, he unrooted two trees from the sidewalks on either side of himself and sent them flying at the rest of the heroes.
Wong took the lead, joining his Tao Mandalas together to make one giant one. As his right-hand man provided a shield of protection from the oncoming trees, Strange turned to Bruce and said, "Dr. Banner, if the rest of your green friend won't be joining us..." He circled the air with one hand, forming a portal underneath Bruce's feet. The scientist fell through with a fading scream, though Aster left herself no time to ponder where Strange sent him.
She shot into the air and manifested dozens of throwing stars in each hand, flicking them down at Maw. With his telepathic abilities, Maw lifted a car from the street and used it as protection. Though, one star slipped past his makeshift shield and knicked him in the face. Even angrier now, Maw launched the vehicle right back at her.
Behind her, Tony used his thrusters to intercept its path toward Aster and send the car right back at Maw, who cut the vehicle in two with a single finger, splitting it just before it could collide with his body.
Aster landed back on the ground next to Tony and Doctor Strange. The former turned to the sorcerer and said, "Gotta get that stone outta here, now."
"It stays with me," Strange firmly insisted.
"Exactly." Tony powered up his thrusters. "Bye."
Understanding that he was attempting to draw Maw away from Doctor Strange, Aster shot into the air after Tony. The two of them did their best to dodge the concrete slabs being thrown at them, but when Obsidian hurled a chain hammer their way, Tony took the hit. He was knocked through a row of buildings, all the way to the park a block over.
Swearing under her breath, Aster flew after him, dropping herself onto the grassy clearing and running over to the limp suit that had collided with a tree. "You okay?"
Bruce came running up behind her, yelling out, "Tony? How we doing? Good? Bad?"
Still laying in the crater his body created, Tony sent both of them an exasperated look through his faceplate. "Really, really good. Really good," he sarcastically hummed, shifting his attention to Bruce. "Do you plan on helping out?"
"I'm trying," Bruce emphasized, resting both hands on his knees. "He won't come out."
"Think of something that makes you angry," Aster hurriedly told him, helping Tony back to his feet.
Before anything else could be said, Obsidian crashed through the neighboring building, launching his hammer at the three Avengers. "Hammer!" Tony called out, pushing Bruce and Aster out of the way.
Aster flicked both palms forward and formed a forcefield, blocking the hammer from hitting them. She grabbed the chain with her powers and held it still as Tony flew into the air, directing his energy beam at Obsidian. The alien stopped the laser with a shield, deflecting the energy into slicing down the trees surrounding them.
One tree cracked, tipping and falling right on top of Bruce. Knowing that Tony had Obsidian handled for the time being, Aster dropped her powers and ran over to him. "Bruce, you okay?"
Crawling out from underneath the fallen tree, Bruce heaved out, "No." He sat up on his knees and curled his hands into fists, crying, "Come on, Hulk! What are you doing to me?"
When he still failed to transform into the Hulk, Bruce looked at Aster pleadingly. "Aster, slap me."
Aster's jaw dropped. "What? No—"
"Do it!"
"I'm not—"
"Slap me—!"
Aster reared an arm back, cracking the back of her hand into Bruce's face. The sheer force of her hit sent him flying back into the leaves of the tree. Covering her gaping mouth with her hand, Aster winced. "I didn't mean to hit you that hard."
"No, no, that was good," he panted, swaying a little. Aster helped him get back to his knees, to which he frustratingly tried slapping himself over and over again in hopes it would work. "Come out! Come out! Come out!"
His face turned green and the veins in his neck popped out. "No!" Hulk screamed.
Without another word, Bruce's body went back to normal and he fell back to the ground. Completely and utterly defeated, he laid there and yelled, "What do you mean, 'no'?!"
Deciding to leave the one-sided argument to Bruce, Aster turned and scanned the park in search of Tony. The last thing she expected to see was Peter in his Spider-Man suit, shielding Tony from being hit by Obsidian's hammer.
Aster sprung into action as Obsidian grabbed the teenager and flung him into the air. She flew after him, softening his blow with her powers.
Landing next to the park's fountain, Aster ran toward Peter, grabbing both of his arms and pulling him to his feet. "Where the hell did you come from?"
"You missed the bus!" Peter shouted, completely ignoring her question.
"Yeah, I was a little preoccupied!" Aster shot back, pushing his body out of the way with her own. The tree that was aimed at them landed in the fountain, splashing water everywhere.
Peter shot a web at a streetlight and tugged Aster into the air with him, barely avoiding the chain hammer that was coming their way. "What's this guy's problem?!"
"Uh, he's from space. He came here to steal a necklace from a wizard. Oh, and these guys are technically Aster's evil siblings," Tony summarized, flying above them.
Peter's suited eyes went wide and he glanced over at Aster. Now using her own powers to hover beside him, Aster sighed, "Yeah, pretty much."
From where he was crouched on top of the light, Peter shot a web at Obsidian and yanked an arm back. Irritated with Peter, Obsidian grabbed the teenager with his clawed hammer and began spinning him around.
Aster focused her powers on Obsidian's feet, trying to anchor him to the ground. Once she had a solid hold on him, Tony shot a laser beam at Obsidian, who angrily hurled a taxi at them in return.
Finally freeing himself from Obsidian's vice grip, Peter shot one web at the car that both Aster and Tony had dodged, anchoring himself mid-air with another. He pulled the car back and launched it back at Obsidian, who wasn't able to move out of the way because of Aster's paralyzing hold. He was knocked over, giving them all a moment to breathe.
Doctor Strange flew past them, seemingly unconscious and wrapped up in restraints. His cloak was guiding him through the air and away from Maw. "I've got the beast," Tony breathed, gesturing toward where Maw was chasing the sorcerer. "You two go after Strange!"
"On it!" Aster didn't need to be told twice. She shot into the air and flew after Strange and Maw. Peter was swinging through the air right behind her.
Not even turning around, Maw flung an arm back and sent a billboard flying at Aster and Peter. Aster dodged it at the last second, turning back to shout, "Webs!"
Peter couldn't move through the air with as much ease as Aster could, so the billboard hit him and knocked him to the ground. "Ah, not cool!" he screamed.
Aster winced, though she forced herself to continue chasing after Strange and Maw. She hurled repeated bursts of energy at Maw, able to knock him off of his path momentarily. Ahead, the cloak wrapped around Doctor Strange's limp body got snagged on a lamppost. Aster glanced behind herself at Peter, who was already back on his feet. "Grab him!"
Nodding, Peter shot a web at Doctor Strange. Taking advantage of her distracted state, Maw dove at Aster in mid-air, tackling her through a building.
She crashed through the brick siding and landed on the flooring inside with a groan. Forcing herself to push her aching body up, Aster spun around in search of Maw.
Peter's timid voice came through her comm, "Uh, Aster? Mr. Stark? I'm being beamed up."
With wide eyes, Aster forgot all about Maw and flew out of the building. In the air above her, Peter was holding onto Strange with a single strand of web. The two of them were being sucked up toward the Q-ship by a blue beam of light. "I'm coming, Pete."
"Hang in there, guys," Tony grunted, clearly occupied.
Aster flew after Peter and Doctor Strange as quickly as she could. They were both gaining altitude faster than she could fly, reaching the ship long before she did. Pursing her lips and unblurring her face to force more energy out of herself, Aster squinted through the rays of sun obstructing her vision and spotted Peter clinging to the ship.
The muffled sound of Tony's thrusters met her ears. She glanced down, noticing him flying after them. "Ace, hang back!" Tony yelled. Aster didn't listen. She was so close to reaching Peter. "Pete, you gotta let go. I'm gonna catch you."
"But you said save the wizard!" Peter countered, taking one hand off of the ship to yank his mask off. His hair was blown back from the wind as he peered up to the sky. "I can't breathe," he panted.
"You're too high up. You're running out of air."
After hearing his strangled breathing through her comms, Aster urged herself to move faster. Unlike him, she could handle the changing oxygen levels. "Webs, I'm almost there."
"I'm fine... I just..."
Peter passed out before he could finish his sentence and he lost his grip, beginning to freefall through the air. Gasping, an unexpected burst of cosmic energy left Aster's palms and she was launched upwards, finally able to grab him.
The momentum of his fall set her back, forcing her to grab onto the side of the ship with one hand. Holding onto Peter's limp body with her other, Aster did her best to keep them both from falling. They were still climbing in altitude, erasing his chances of breathing anytime soon. Even if she were to rush him back to the ground, it would probably be too late. Losing her cool, Aster stuttered out, "I don't... Dad, what do I do?!"
"Let go of him, Ace," Tony urged, trying to calm her down. "I have a plan."
Shaking her head, Aster's eyes were glued to Peter. "I-I can't."
"Aster, it's okay. Trust me and let go of him."
"...Promise?"
"Promise."
Aster hesitated before letting go of her grip on Peter's wrist. She held her breath as he fell through the air for a few seconds. Suddenly, a metal pod flew past Tony, breaking off into nanoparticles as it came in contact with Peter's back. His usual suit was replaced by the new and improved Iron Spider suit that Tony had designed, which had built-in oxygen for Peter to breathe.
Coming back to consciousness, Peter caught himself on the lower section of the Q-ship. It took him a moment to grasp onto the ship, but once he was fully grounded, Peter stood tall and yelled, "It smells like a new car in here!"
Aster let go of a relieved breath, smiling at his excitement.
Flying past him, Tony nodded. "Happy trails, kid. F.R.I.D.A.Y, send him home."
"Yup."
A parachute extended from the spider emblem on the back of his suit, sending Peter spiraling back to Earth. "Oh, come on!" he yelled, his voice fading away.
Tony landed next to Aster, sinking his fingers into the side of the ship. Pulling her eyes away from where Peter disappeared, she sent Tony a look. "Don't even try that with me."
Even with his face being obstructed by his helmet, Aster could tell that Tony was at war with himself. As much as he wanted to send her down to Earth to ensure her safety, he knew it wasn't fair. This was her fight, more than it was anyone else's. "You stay right by my side, got it?"
A wry smile made its way onto Aster's face. "You should stick by mine. I've been to space more times than you, old man."
"If you 'old man' me one more time, I'm sending you home," he threatened, though there was amusement lacing his words. She could practically see his eye roll as he turned and began lasering a hole in the side of the ship for them to enter through.
Glancing down at Earth, Aster gripped the side of the ship a little tighter. They were passing through Earth's atmosphere and entering space. When Tony had an entryway lasered into the side of the ship, he helped her in first before following.
"Boss, incoming call from Miss Potts," F.R.I.D.A.Y. softly announced, making them both share a look.
Tony answered the call on speaker, dissolving his faceplate now that they were inside the ship. Immediately, Pepper's voice came through, "Tony? Oh, my God. Are you all right? What's going on?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," he told her, peering around the ship wearily. "I just think we might have to push our 8:30 res."
"Why?"
"Just 'cause..." he glanced at Aster and his expression twisted. "Aster and I probably won't make it back for a while."
A beat of silence passed. "Tell me you and Aster are not on that ship."
"Yeah," Tony whispered.
"God, no. Please tell me you two are not on that ship."
The heartbreak in Pepper's voice made Aster feel terrible. Tony clamped his eyes shut for a split second at the sound of his fiancée on the verge of tears. "Honey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I don't know what to say."
"You guys come back here. I swear to God—"
"Pep..."
Pepper's begging faded into static as the ship floated out of Earth's atmosphere.
"Boss, Ace, we're losing her." Even F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice began to break apart. "I-I'm going, too..."
Their comms fell silent. Aster peered up at Tony, holding her breath at the realization that they were completely and utterly alone.
Left with no other choice but to continue on, Aster and Tony slowly and quietly made their way through the ship, searching for Maw and Doctor Strange. They emerged on the upper-level deck, spotting the two down on the main level. Doctor Strange was suspended in the air, surrounded by dozens of sharp needle-like projections to keep him in place. In front of him was Maw, with his hands clasped behind his back and a sick smirk on his face, saying something to the sorcerer that neither of them could hear.
"Maw doesn't know we're here. We have to use that to our advantage," Aster whispered.
Tony hummed at her words, opening his mouth to respond. He wasn't able to say anything before a sudden presence between him and Aster had both of them springing apart and raising a hand, ready to shoot with their respective powers.
When they saw it was just Strange's cloak hovering between them, both of them dropped their arms with a sigh. "Wow you're a seriously loyal piece of outerwear, aren't you?" Tony joked.
"Yeah, uh, speaking of loyalty..."
Aster's eyes went wide and she whipped around, watching as Peter jumped down from his upside-down position. "How...?"
"I know what you're gonna say," he prefaced, dissolving his mask and glancing between the two.
"You should not be here," Tony sternly told him.
"I was gonna go home—"
"I don't wanna hear it."
"But it was such a long way down and I just thought about you guys on the way—"
Tony threw his hands up by his side. "And now I gotta hear it," he muttered.
"...And I kinda stuck to the side of the ship. And this suit is ridiculously intuitive, by the way." Peter paused, gesturing toward Tony. "So if anything, it's kinda your fault that I'm here."
Tony's head shot up at Peter's words. Even the cloak hovering in the air beside him seemed shocked at the teenager's words.
Aster simply rubbed the bridge of her nose with her suited hand, mumbling, "Here we go."
Pointing at his mentee threateningly, Tony demanded, "What did you just say?"
Peter's wide eyes flickered over to Aster, silently begging her to save him. "I-I take that back. And now I'm here in space!"
Tony stalked toward Peter with an uncharacteristically angry expression on his face. "Yeah. Right where I don't want you to be. This isn't Coney Island. This isn't a field trip." His voice grew quiet and the emotion in his tone was jarring. "It's one-way ticket. You hear me? Don't pretend like you thought this through—"
"No, I did think this through!"
"You could not have possibly thought this through."
Instead of shrinking away from Tony's intimidating nature, Peter stuck up for himself, "It's just... You can't be a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man when there's no neighborhood." Pausing, he thought back on his analogy with a wince. "Okay, that didn't really make any sense, but you know what I'm trying to say." He glanced over at Aster and his eyes softened at her subtle proud smile. "I just wanna help."
Aster felt conflicted. She wanted Peter as far away from Thanos as possible, but he was here, and there was no turning back. So, she to Tony and shrugged. "We do need the help."
Tony eyed the two of them with an unreadable expression. Finally, he turned and pointed down to where Doctor Strange was being tortured. "Come on. We got a situation. See him down there? He's in trouble. What's your plan? Go."
"Um. Okay, okay." Crouching down, Peter delved deep into thought. A crease formed in the skin between his eyebrows, staying there until a sudden idea seemed to come to him and he sprung right back up. "Uh, did you ever see that really old movie, Aliens?"
Tony turned to Aster with confusion written all over his face. Aster, on the other hand, was staring at Peter with nothing but clarity. "Webs, you're a genius."
AUTHOR'S NOTE!
a lot of action in this chapter, let's chat!
tony is being such a dad to aster and peter right now.
for how sad this movie is, the comedy is unmatched.
anyways, they're entering space!
doctor strange is about to be so fed up with all of them.
and it's only going to get better when they run into our beloved guardians of the galaxy.
anyways, i'm actually writing this on thursday night but i'm gonna test out the new "publish later" button and see if it automatically posts on sunday since i'll be away this weekend!
hope you're all enjoying this act so far!
<3 mal