I was only barely used to seeing one at most around the city occasionally, rescuing the odd person here and there. Of course, every time one emerged, there were huge programs on every news channel about them. I felt so grateful they were here, but never thought about actually having their job one day.
Now here I am, watching them fly in to save my aunt and vanquish the villain, aka Marceline. I had a tab to settle with her, though, before they whisked her away to who-knows-where.
Lightning quick, but not fast enough to draw too much attention, I raced inside of my apartment building and up twenty flights of stairs. Our elevators could never be trusted with all of this commotion going on.
I reached the twentieth floor, more than a little out of breath.
Panting, I staggered down the hallway and fumbled with the keys. After opening the door, I slipped inside. Turning away from the door, I met a horrible sight.
Face turned towards the heavens, eyes wide open and bloodshot.
Clothes ripped and torn, hanging on by mere threads.
Hands bound, the fingers all broken and twisted.
Lips curled into a sickening smirk.
Not breathing.
Uncle Ben.
Marceline had kept her word.
I bent double, bile simmering in my stomach.
Rushing over, I let my fingers tremble over his lifeless body. One tear slipped out, then another. In the blink of an eye, I was sobbing hysterically over his body.
It wasn't fair, I thought angrily. He never deserved this, and Aunt Mae didn't derveve her current predicament, either. It should have been me, trussed up like a turkey dangling over the top of Eastwood. It should have been me, bloody and bent and broken on the couch.
Shuddering, I wiped the tears away. He would get a proper good-bye later. I had a job to do.
I sped away from what was possibly the most horrifying scene of my life and into my room. Stripping off my clothes, I yanked my costume on and pulled the mask over my head.
Gritting my teeth, I jumped straight through my window (thank goodness it was open, that would have been a fortune to replace). Before gravity kicked in, I flung out a web and swung back to the side of the building. I climbed like my life depended on it. I guess it did... Kind of.
Once I reached the top, hidden, I gauged the distance between the roof and the quickly approaching Avengers. It was about one hundred feet.
Suddenly, I heard a beep coming from... No, it couldn't be... It sounded like it came from Iron Man's suit. His headpiece, precisely.
Then, it began to talk.
"Mr. Stark," I heard. "There appears to be a total of three humans on the rooftop."
I gave a very quiet "Dang Stark and his super smart tech!" and listened for more.
"They all seem to be females, though two of them are... rather unusual, sir."
"Unusual how, Jarvis?" Came Tony's reply, flying ever closer.
Jarvis hesitated. Finally, he... it... whatever... said, "Well, the one in pink is infected, in a way. She has increased metabolism, and her body temperature is much, much higher than that of a normal person's. Her powers include the manipulation of fire. She also seems to be flying, sir."
Tony grunted. "Yeah, I can see that. What about the other one? I'm sure that old geezer isn't the second weird one, is she?"
Rule number one: Never insult Spyder or her family. Ever.
"Correct, Mr. Stark," Jarvis continued. "There is a young female, about the age of the flying one, out of your line of vision. I can detect her body heat. Shall I scan for a better image?"
"Why not?" Iron Man said. "Let's see her."
I felt the suit send out a wave of some form of radiation and pass through me. I shivered slightly, and crawled away from the ever-nearing team of superheroes.
"Well, she appears to have a unique set of skills, not unlike that of Spider-Man's, and-"
"Wait," Stark interrupted. "Spider-who?"
"Have you forgotten? He's our youngest team member, sir, who you often refer to as 'Spidey.' He has the qualities of a spider, such as shooting webs, climbing walls, supersen-"
"Oh, yeah, right." He said. "So now we have a Mr. and Mrs. running around. Wonderful, Jarvis. Is she dangerous?"
I wanted to web that suit right over here and show him exactly how dangerous I could be. Rule number two: Never underestimate Spyder. Ever.
"Well, she may or may not be, but she appears to have heard you, sir."
Tony cursed semi-quietly. "That's just great. Not one, but two freaks we need to deal with. What next, a new Ultron?"
"Tony," Jarvis said patiently. "Ultron is gone forever. You should focus on the task at hand. We should take out the pink one first. Then, save the 'old geezer.' The female Spider-Man may be of use to the Avengers team. Should I contact the others?"
"What the heck? Go ahead," Tony muttered, still flying, but about twenty feet away now.
Suddenly, I heard Jarvis' voice echo through at least four other places, all alarmingly close. "Save the female tied up, then take down the flying pink one. Knock out the white one, but do not harm her. Widow, you, Thor, and Cap are to take care of the pink female. Bruce and P-... Spider-Man, untie and bring down the older one. Barton, knock out the white one. Tony will analyze and record the subjects while in combat. Go."
I started hyperventilating. Barton was Hawkeye, the man really good with a bow. I called him the Man-Katniss, but that was irrevelant right now.
What was I supposed to do, dodge all those razor-sharp arrows? I don't think so.
Still nervous, I scanned for the rest of the Avengers quickly, reaching out with all of my senses.
Black Widow, aka Agent Romanoff, was jumping roofs, eyes focused solely on Marceline. Captain America was sneaking up from behind, his shield at the ready. Thor, the god with the hammer, was standing on the above rooftop, swinging his hammer towards an unsuspecting villainess and murderer.
I growled, losing focus. She killed Uncle Ben, one of the three people closest to my heart. I really wanted to throttle her.
Realizing my mistake, I quickly tuned back in. Bruce Banner and Spider-Man were stealthily creeping out from the door that led to below and towards Aunt Mae.
Tony slowed until he reached a complete stop, hovering over us all. If I remained absolutely still, I could feel tiny vibrations coming off in waves; scanning our constant behavior, and possibly our vitals.
Last but not least, Barton. I concentrated, but couldn't find him anywhere. Where could the Man-Katniss be?
Suddenly, that very someone dropped from above, suspended from a grappling arrow.
"Hey, honey," He said gently, preparing to shoot. "I'm really sorry about this, but it's Stanky's orders. I'll go easy."
I froze, too stunned to move. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think. Couldn't react.
He released the rather thin arrow, almost like a needle. I saw it flying, slow-motion, towards my throat. I felt it pierce my skin, injecting a liquid into my blood.
Snapping back, I inhaled sharply and jerked the needle out of my neck. I threw it down and watched it plummet to the pavement far, far below.
Beeelow.
My body was going numb. I was loosing my grip on the building. I fought the paralysis with all my might, but this was some A-grade stuff.
Above me somewhere, I barely heard a thud as what I presumed to be Marceline crumpling to the roof.
"A thousand curses," I heard someone mutter. Yep, definitely Marcy.
The last thing I felt after a short fall was strong arms grasping me, cradling my limp, helpless, and utterly miserable form.
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<·<Pepper_B_Parker*Alias:_Spyder*Position:_S.H.I.E.L.D._agent>·>
This chapter, I swear... Let's just say I had a heck of a time writing it.