Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel; only Rebecca and the world surrounding her.
Biblical - Biffy Clyro
Welcome to Impulse from the To Build A Home Series!
Thanks to everyone that reviewed, favorited, and subscribed to this story so far!
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Biblical
Baby if you could would you go back to the start?
Take any fresh steps or watch it all fall apart again?
It could have been a wonderful year
Instead we might not make it to the end
Everybody cares, but nobody knows
It was cold, that was all she could detect before gaining any other sense of her surroundings or bodily functions. Frigid more like it. Wind was whipping her face, eyes stinging as she finally cracked her lids open, the night sky coming in views.
"Becca! I've got to drop you!"
Her father's voice eager and high in her ear. It was what had shaken her from her unconscious state. She looked around sporadically, finding she was flying through the air, carried by Tony in the Iron Man suit.
"W-what?"
"I'm running out of power! I've got to drop you quick."
She looked to the ground below her, seeing dips of trees and snow on either side of the road. Becca held on tight to one of his hands, himself holding back tighter, as she dropped her body from the bridal position she had been in for who knows how long. Her body dangled by just her hand as she watched them getting closer to the ground, watching far enough away to see where she could fall with as little pain as possible. That's when she saw the mountain of snow that had formed from the wind blowing steady.
"NOW!" Becca screamed the words, losing her grip the same time as Tony. It wasn't the safest landing, but her body was quickly covered by the snow as she sunk down, feeling the hard ground under her toes and she immediately rolled herself to break the landing. As the girl finally landed on her back, the snow underneath felt like heaven on her aching body.
She didn't give herself anymore time to rest, the SHIELD Agent presenting itself inside of her, pulling herself up into a standing position. Her eyes immediately caught the destruction of trees in the wake of where her father had blown through right after dropping her. Becca trudged through the snow up onto the road, letting the pavement be her navigator to find her father hopefully somewhere down the road.
Becca carefully wrapped her arms around her aching and wounded upper body. The cold was finally gnawing down to her bones as the adrenaline officially wore off. She almost expected a car to drive past, but not one came as she kept up her stumble of walking.
"Becca!"
Said girl heard the sound of Tony's voice not that far ahead of her, meaning she had to be getting close. "Dad!" She stared a small jog, finally seeing a man standing in the field in front of her. "Are you okay?"
"I was going to ask you." Tony declared, looking over his daughter as she was only a few steps away from him at this point. Becca was doing the same to him, the gashes edging his face was what really looked the worse. If he looked like that with a suit on, she probably looked like a walking dead girl. "Christ, Bec-"
"I'm fine." She shrugged it off, wiping at her face, not knowing if it was blood or snow or who knew what. "Where the hell are we?"
He sighed, looking down at the shell that was the Iron Man suit. "5 miles from Rose Hill, Tennessee."
Her hazel eyes just about dropped out of her head at the words, not expecting to be so far from home. "Why!"
"Family Vacation. Sounded like a great idea."
"Dad?"
Tony dropped down into the snow, pushing the suit back together so all the pieces met up to close. "I made the flight plan to Jarvis and he thought now was a good time to use it." He pulled straps out of the back of the suit. "You wouldn't happen to have your phone on you?"
Becca started patting herself down, feeling nothing else but the clothes on her back. "I've got nothing." Her fingers tracing the empty knife sheath on her hip. Visions of the attack suddenly plaguing her thoughts. The explosions, using her knife to try to pull herself up the leaning house, and then crashing into the water below. She must have lost it in the chaos.
"Well," Tony sighed, grabbing the two straps over his shoulders, "North or South?"
She watched him for a moment, clearly not letting the situation fully digest itself and to keep going. Then again, if they didn't start walking soon they were more likely to freeze to death at this point.
"North." She whispered in the frozen air, grabbing one of the straps herself so both Starks could share the weight of the suit.
The two were quiet for the beginning of their trek, using all their energy to focus on pulling the dead weight of iron behind them through the snow. Becca's head moving a mile a minute. They were hundreds of miles away from home, had no money, and no way to communicate to anyone to let them know where they were. Also that a terrorist had fulfilled a promise that wasn't even created by him. It had to be well over a mile before either spoke.
"Why Tennessee?"
"What?" Tony asked, not paying attention having been stuck in his own thoughts.
"Why did you have a flight plan to Rose Hill, Tennessee? What's so special about this place?" Her fingers burning from the cold and holding tightly to the strap.
His heavy breath was shown white in the air for a second as he contemplated the answer. But they were literally on their own now, it was the two of them and that was it at this point. "I've been doing some research. Was looking over the blast that happen with Happy. The heat from the blast was the same there as it was here in Rose Hill."
"You wanted to see what the similarities were." She deducted the reasoning. "There wasn't any Mandarin attack here. Well, at least that we know about since the government is being hush hush over it." All of the sudden, the anger in the pit of her stomach was growing enough to warm her for a split second. "You know, I thought having a Godfather would get me more intel."
"Rhodey not tell you a thing?"
"I swear he's more secretive than you half the time."
The thought of Becca trying to get intel out of his best friend and the two of them fighting over it was few and far between, but a battle between the two was fun to watch. And it usually ended with a lashing Rhodey wasn't expecting from the young girl. This time, however, clearly he wasn't budging. "Anyways, the only similarities between the two explosions had to do with two guys in the Military. Which is a bit odd."
She nodded. "Guess we do have some work to do here then."
"Might be better if we stay off the grid for a while."
Becca didn't answer that, but agreed. If the world thought they were missing then the threat was off of their family and friends. She knew she had an ear fill coming from New York though.
Finally, after a few miles they saw a beacon of hope. A gas station sat in the distance ahead of them, making the father and daughter ground their feet harder into the ground to move faster. The Texaco sign was a beacon of hope in the dark night, or morning. Neither knew exactly what time it was at this point or even what day. They dropped the iron suit at the base of the phone booth that stood on the outside of the gas station, both stretching their backs to release the tension that has started to build up.
"Here." Tony held out a poncho he pulled off of an Indian statue next to them, but she only shook her head.
"I've at least got a zip up." She denied the article of clothing, zipping up the sweatshirt further to show she was fine. Her father only had a few t-shirts on.
"Bec-"
"-I'm fine. Honestly." Becca looked around her, seeing that the station was closed but could see the outside bathrooms on the side. "I'm going to use the bathroom."
He nodded, pulling the fabric over his head. "I'm gonna leave a message for Pepper."
With a small smile, that didn't meet her eyes, she turned on her heel. She was surprised that the door was unlocked when she turned the knob. Small town charm at it's finest. The yellow light flickered for a few seconds before finally staying on, a buzz echoing off of the white tile walls and floor. It was small, the toilet and sink just a few inches apart from each other but Becca couldn't care at the moment. The thick smell of bleach and tobacco filtered through her nose as she finally felt a tad bit warmer out of the frigid outdoors.
Nimble fingers found the sink basin, her eyes finally looking at herself in the cracked mirror in front of her. She looked a mess. Plain and simple. Her face held small cuts around, one exclusively deep gash above her eyebrow. She had no doubt her body looked similar underneath the clothing she wore. She turned only the hot water on from the faucet and watched the the blood and dirt start to run off of her hands, but still leaving a deep layer under her nails.
If anyone was to look at her they would probably think she was mauled by an animal. And that's the story she would stick with.
Becca grabbed some paper towels and tried to wipe some of the bloody tracks from her face and neck. She pitied the person who would have to clean up after her, seeing the bloody papers filling up the waste bin rather quickly. Something that was just more than a nose bleed on a bad day. Taking one last breath, the brunette exited the small room, the cold immediately blanketing over her again. It was perfect timing as Tony was exiting the phone booth just then.
"Ready?" Becca called out, finally pulling her hood over messy hair for a tad bit more warmth.
Tony nodded, rubbing his hands together. "Yeah, left Pepper a message." He watched her walk over and grab one of the straps again. "You want to call anyone?"
"Nope." She pulled it over her shoulder, waiting for her father to do the same so they could keep going.
"Bec-"
"I see a water tower over there, we're probably close."
He didn't ask again, but did give her a look as if he was trying to read or make her open up but she wasn't budging. So, with a soft grunt, he grabbed the other strap and the two started their trek once again. Silence with a heavy fog over their already cold atmosphere.
Of course Becca wanted to called someone but she couldn't. There were four people on that list and she knew that three of them would drop everything and try to come save her. They didn't need anymore people in harm's way then they already had. Eve would be a wreck no matter what since she has no way of helping in this situation, Natasha would try to track everything down piece by piece and leave a red mess in the wake, Steve would find her and come straight to her to help, and Clint was actually the closest to where she was but needed to stay off the grid still. Oh, there was also Director Fury who would kindly put in how 'stupid she was' to even be part of such an attack. It was just better this way.
They could finally see the actual town coming into their view, porch lights shining about to make out houses in the distance. They made their way around the first one they came to, finding an iron door in the back that looked to be the entrance to a shed. Letting Tony rest the entire weight of the suit on him as Becca found an iron tool to jam the door open, the Iron Man suit falling to the inside upon the door opening.
"Well, if that didn't sound like we're breaking in..." Becca whispered, putting the tool back.
"We're not breaking in." Tony discarded the poncho that was beginning to actually make him sweat.
"Oh no, what would you call it?"
"Temporarily housing us."
She rolled her eyes, looking over the expansive shed that might have actually been a garage at one point. "Family vacation at it's finest."
"Enough with your sass and help me get him inside." The father and daughter dragged the suit for the last time to the small couch.
As the warmth was starting to defrost Becca, she zipped the hoodie off her body. The fabric pulled at the cuts that littered her arms as she let it drop to the ground. The two Starks sat on opposite sides of the workshop, pulling glass and what not out of their bodies.
"Freeze!"
A different voice shout through the space, catching them both off guard. Becca looked up to find a young boy standing in the doorway, no older than 12. But what she really took notice to was the potato gun raised in his hand at her father.
"Don't move."
"You got me." Tony lifted his hands in innocence, but his face read otherwise. Becca simply let him handle it, while using a pair of needle nose pliers to get the glass out of her bicep. "Nice potato gun. Barrel's a little long. Between that and the wide gauge, it's going to diminish your FPS." To prove him wrong, the little boy shot a glass off the shelf in perfect aim. "And now you're out of ammo."
"What's that thing on your chest?"
Becca glanced up in surprise by his question, not expecting that to be the first thing to come out of the boy's mouth. Maybe a 'Get out of my house' or 'What do you want', something like that.
Here Tony was thinking the same thing. "It's an electromagnet. You should know, you got a box of them right here." It was true, the shed was filled with odds and ends of equipment.
The boy still held the gun in an aimed position, but was curious. "What does it power?"
Tony looked over at his daughter, almost contemplating if they should show up in iron suit that sat behind him.
"Might as well show him," she shrugged, starting work on her other arm, "I mean we did break into his house." With a nod, Tony switched the small desk light towards the couch and stood up.
At the sight, the boy dropped the gun and his whole demeanor changed to one of surprise and joy. "Oh my God!" He took a few steps closer to get a better look. "That...that's-is that Iron Man?"
"Technically, I am."
"Technically, you're dead." The boy stuffed a paper to Tony's chest before going to the couch.
Becca forgot all about her injuries as she scrambled back to her feet, taking quick steps over to her father. The front page headline was in bold reading, MANDARIN ATTACK: STARK FAMILY PRESUMED DEAD. Underneath before the fold was a photo of Tony and herself, followed by a photo of the Iron Man suit.
"Valid Point." Tony released the paper, letting Becca take it where she propped herself up on the workbench and started to read the article.
"What happened to him?" the boy was kneeling on the couch, touching and prodding everything he could on the suit.
"Life." He observed his daughter's face as she read through the article, but he could see she was going to let on much so he turned to the kid. "I built him, I take care of him. I'll fix him."
"Like a mechanic." The younger swiveled the head back and forth. "If I was building Iron Man and War Machine-"
"-It's Iron Patriot now."
"That's way cooler!"
"No, it's not." Tony glanced over hearing a snort from Becca, but not knowing if it was from the name or the article.
"Anyways, I would have added in," he tried to remember the world he was looking for, "um, the retro-"
"Retro-reflective panels?"
"To make him stealth mode."
Becca somewhat heard the conversation and looked up to give the boy a smile. "That's actually a good idea." The reaction got a wide smile from the boy and a 'don't encourage him' look from her dad. Becca just rolled her eyes and went back to the article, officially tuning them out.
It was standard for the most part, classic 'get-you' sentences to leave the reader thinking the absolute worse. Then again, she might just be thinking that because she knew they weren't dead. At least for now. It reminded her so much for the articles that were written when her father went missing all those years ago now, this time she was involved. And the world was still split on whether she was the extra fighter in the New York battle, so in plenty of minds she was just an innocent victim.
And that's what it said, that Tony Stark led a terrorist to the house where his daughter was also inside, leading him to her death. She knew the truth though, she led herself to her own 'demise'. This had been the same trope she had been hearing her whole life though. Always the headlines about her father galavanting around the world while his simple daughter stay at home, locked up in her tower. No one could ever believe that a single billionaire could actually love and take care of his daughter as a single parent. What a crazy thought.
But back to the original article, the world thought they were dead. Regret sat in the her stomach, making her nauseous and heart beat rising. The only person that knew they were alive, besides this young boy they barged in on, was Pepper and that was only if she checked the Stark Secure Server. Becca now wished she would have taken Tony's offer of calling someone. Just one person in particular. That man was going to blame himself and that wrecked her even more.
Becca looked over, trying to get her mind off of the worse, watching Tony and the boy interact. Tony giving him something to fend off bullies at school. It all was oddly settling.
"What's your name?" Tony questioned the kid.
"Harley." He answered, flipping the device around to see how it would work. "And you're..."
"The Mechanic. Tony."
"And you?" Harley turned over his shoulder, looked at Becca with wide eyes.
She gave him a shy smile, intrigue resting on his young face. Watching him with pure innocence reminded her why she was in this lifestyle. Why she took on the job of protecting anyone and everyone. Especially the ones that could not help themselves. "I'm Bex."
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He couldn't turn it off. He couldn't turn the channel. He couldn't move from the seat. It was almost that he was on sensory overload, not feeling or hearing anymore, just watching. The images flashing across his eyes for hours. Over and over. Torturing himself. News stations had nothing better to report on. This was the story that had taken over the US and no doubt overseas.
And the worse part, Steve hated watching new stations.
Becca always joked with him about his apprehension to watch nightly or morning news. He would much rather read a newspaper or the internal reports they would get in from SHIELD. Reading reports allowed him to make his own opinion about a situation and not be swayed one way or another. But in this situation there was only really one story, and it was broadcasted on live television.
The second he watched the first missile hit the mansion, Steve felt his knees give way. He had been at the last shoot for the PSAs, finishing up the ending scenes that they needed when there were murmurs about. He caught the tail end of the conversation something about the Mandarin and the Starks. He ignored the production around him and raced to the TV, finding the explosion in the wake. They had replayed in the demolishment so many times he could practically count each second a new wave hit.
They might have not been done filming, but he was. He quickly changed out of the uniform and raced towards Becca's office, hoping to find Natasha. But it was empty. He turned on the TV in the corner that was now getting more use than it had in years. And that's where Steve had stationed himself all night, sitting at Becca's desk, just watching. Waiting for someone to tell him it was a lie. That she was fine and safe. But they still hadn't found her or Tony under the rubble or in the water below. Anywhere. There was no trace of them.
The last time he was in the office Becca was the one panicking, yelling that no one was calling and letting her know what was going on. Now he sat with his own phone in his palm and no answer was coming his way. He felt regret, wishing he would have gone with her a few days ago. Maybe he could have saved her, and she would be safe.
God, he couldn't think like that. She couldn't be gone. Rebecca Stark could not be dead. She was to highwilled for this to be her downfall.
If she had gone into the water and drowned, that would drive him mad. He knew that feeling, of crashing into the ocean and suffocating with water surrounding you. She shouldn't have to know that pain and it was driving him mad.
It was nearing 6AM when he finally left the office and SHIELD, not getting anything he wanted done there anyways. There had to be something he could do. Anything. He was supposed to fly out to California today, at the time to spend Christmas with the Stark family, but now he was on a mission to save her. That didn't help though, when he nearly crashed his bike seeing the lights on in her apartment just ahead of him.
It was such a blur as Steve somehow parked his bike and ran the steps up to the top floor of the apartment building. His hands were a jittering mess as he put the key in the door and swung it open, hitting the wall beside it.
"Becca!" His voice was loud, not caring about the time, just needing to know if his mind was playing tricks on him.
"S-steve?"
The voice was soft and gravely, but he couldn't place it at first. His heart jumped into his throat as movement came out of the bedroom. But his shoulder visibly deflated at recognizing the person, not who he was expecting. Eve stood there, hair a mess and eyes red from crying. She held her arms around herself, feeling so cold in the warm apartment.
"I-" Eve's voice slipped, seeing a familiar face, but also not the one was expecting either, "I didn't know where else to go."
He only nodded, closing the door behind him, leaving the two in the viciously quiet apartment. The both had the same thoughts of wanting one person back, but neither knew how to move forward with the thought of her gone.
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Up Next: Fight in a small town.
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