Chapter 46: A+ Relationship AdventuresNotes:Gonna be honest I've just had a terrible day and figured what the hell, let's post. My allergies are killing me....There's a row of trees bordering the playground at recess and I'm so allergic to them. I've been sneezing like a Loony Toon character despite allergy meds. My kids have been making so many Covid jokes, the brats(I love them but god I'm glad I don't have any of my own at home. Just the hoard at work). So surprise chapter, update schedule is still Saturdays. But just...I spent forty minutes scraping dried clay off tables from our art project, stepped on two legos, and am so congested... This week is gonna suck....also I need stronger allergy meds. Benadryl here I come, Claritin has failed me.
Chapter TextPietro spotted the frowning Darcy as he dropped into the lab. "The news?" He asked.
"I'll sue their pants off for defamation of character and liable as soon as Daisy's back." Darcy's eyes were sharp and she fiddled with one of her dodads. Not that he was stupid enough not to know it was probably important but his eyes glazed over when she tried to explain them.
Instead of asking about the tech, he cleared his throat. "I have had an idea."
"Well now I'm supes nervous. What up Speedy?" Darcy looked at him curiously.
He actually felt his face flush slightly. "I might have a solution to your media problem."
"Oooo, this will be good. What's the plot?" Darcy adjusted her knit beanie on her head while giving him her full attention, screwdriver tucked behind one ear.
Pietro grinned. "What if we date? Like officially and everything."
"Wait, like date and shit? Go on gross dates, you get me flowers, we cuddle after boinking?" She raised a brow, looking at him. "That is oddly sentimental. I know I'm good, but really?"
He rolled his eyes. "Please, the sex is good but it's not that good."
"Harsh, but no sex is worth a doomed relationship so continue." She waved her hand airily.
Pietro crossed his arms. "We already get fruity cocktails and judge people at bars at least once a month. Yesterday we started watching season five of Game of Thrones and we've already watched all of How I Met Your Mother. Unless your SheepEE's are sentient I think I'm the person you spend the most time with. Same for me. It makes sense."
"Valid points." Darcy frowned slightly. "How does this fix the media issue?"
Pietro blinked. "Well if we were dating they wouldn't think you were leading on Peter and I?"
"Ah, that would actually make this worse. Right now I'm the undecisive whore who has enchanted two super heros with my evil vagina. If we go all official then I'm the whore who broke up Spiderquake with my evil vagina just for shits and giggles because I actually wanted you. All very Shakespearean I'm sure. But I've got no plans for washing my hands to get rid of spots of blood from asshole reporters. So no go." Darcy slid to her feet and stepped into his space. She patted his shoulder. "If you want to reask the date question with it being on the DL I'm game."
"English is not my first language." He really was baffled sometimes by what she said. About twenty percent of that had sounded like gibberish.
Darcy snickered, leaned up and pressed a kiss to his cheek with a slight smacking sound. "You, me, romantic dating. Exclusive fuck buddies who snuggle and are gross. I'm in if you're in." She gestured between them. "But no telling the paps cause then it'd get worse."
"Really?" He was oddly touched. "I'd have to tell Wanda."
She looked at him like he was stupid. "Obviously, she reads minds. Sisters before misters, I got it."
"Want to have celebratory lab sex?" Pietro gave his best rakish grin. It had a five out of ten success rate.
Darcy's eyes flicked up and then down. "Janey and Erik are guest lecturing today. They won't be back for another hour." She wrapped her arms over his shoulders. "Let's do this thang lover boy."
Pietro zipped them to the couch, an hour wasn't that long and not everything was better faster. "You like orders, very sexy."
"Don't you know it." She grinned, but there was a genuine pleased sort of hum to her as she spoke. It was nice. Good. It was really good.
They both stilled at a high pitched beeping. He groaned. "Science?"
"Science." She slipped out from under him and hopped over to the control station and frowned. "That's weird, Sheep-EE thirty seven just uploaded new coordinates." Darcy's fingers started adjusting dials and switches on the board.
He couldn't help pouting. "Can it wait? Celebratory dating sex, I hear it's very good."
"Yeah no, just let me portal the little guy home." Darcy waved off absentmindedly, her attention completely focused on the science.
Pietro sighed, well that was to be expected with Darcy. He zipped to the cupboards and started rooting through the snack food. At the least he was leaving the labs with something to eat. "Do you want a poptart? I think I'm going to toast one."
There was the familier whooshing sound of a portal opening. It was kind of hilarious really, he was that used to portals he just ignored them now. Only this time Darcy made a squeaking sound.
Pietro moved, one minute he was digging through the poptarts, the next he was in front of Darcy, blocking her off from the portal room. His face set ready to kick the ass of...the hot lady with a sword holding one of the Sheep-EEs. Hot lady he recognized at second glance.
"Sif?" Darcy clamored past him, elbowing him in the ribs in the process. "Shit, warrior lady, what up?"
"Lady Darcy!" Sif strode forward clasping one arm to her chest and bowing. "I come to beg your aid. Asgard needs you in it's hour of need."
"Oh woah." Darcy pushed her glasses up her nose. "Uh not that I wouldn't, Thor's my dude you know. But like If you guys are facing an hour of need I'm not your girl. Don't you need the Avengers?"
Sif shook her head. "No, we require the aid of yourself and the Lady Jane. Your portals."
"Huh." Darcy seemed to be as baffled as Pietro was feeling. "Coolio, so like...what do you need portaled?"
Sif's eyes were steelie as she stared at Darcy. "As many of the civilians as possible. My brothers in arms can only hold Hela, goddess of death at bay for so long."
"You want evac for how many Asgardians?" Darcy had a certain tremble to her voice.
Pietro clasped a hand on her shoulder. He might be able to help move people.
Sif swallowed. "As many as you can. All of Asgard stands poised to fall."
"Right, all of Asgard." Darcy seemed to balk. But then she straightened, chin tipped up. "Right, well let's get portalling shall we. Where do you need me to open a portal? We can keep one open for two minutes now and reopen them every five minutes." She turned to Pietro. "Go get Jane."
He nodded, tearing his eyes away from Sif, she wasn't an enemy. "I'll be back in a flash."
"Go go road runner." She teased, but then she was turning back to the alien as he took off in a dead sprint for the university. Saving Asgard, totally what he'd been hoping for. But he did have an official girlfriend, so not a total loss.
////
Hill had given up on tower security an hour ago. Jane and Darcy were working like machines to get as many people through the portal as quickly as possible. Which left the rest of them scrambling to find conference rooms for refugees to at least be able to sit down in. She twitched at the sight of what was clearly a child in Dr Cho's cradle. "Status?"
"Anyone with first aid training would be helpful." Dro Cho replied without looking away from the severed arm she was treating.
She could see the entire biology lab had already been recruited to help with the injuries. Reports from Asgard were mixed, but zombies with swords attacking civilians were disturbing enough. "I'll send anyone I can."
"Don't worry about reattaching anything. Just stop the bleeding!" Cho snapped at one of her assistants.
Hill turned on her heel, no one had time to give her more information. As she walked she reconnected to Pepper. "Do we have any medically trained personnel that are helping with intake or Dr Cho?"
-"No, and I can't just bring people in because aliens."- Pepper bit out, clearly as overwhelmed as everyone else. -"I can send out a request to our other facilities but the risks if Hydra or AIM get their hands on an Asgardian…."- She didn't have to finish the thought.
Which, this was not a disaster she was prepared for. "Get someone to call the Norwegian embassy. They might be inclined to accept refugees from Asgard."
-"I'll have Morse make contact, but that will take weeks."- There was a thumping sound and then muffled shouts. Then Pepper's voice was back and clear. -"I'm closing the tower for all non-essential work. That will give you from the third floor on up."-
Hill glanced at the display on her wrist. "That will be useful, number 2,345 just crossed over." She winced as her other line went off. "I've got to go. Contact me if you require logistics, I have Franklin working on housing options."
-"We'll get through this, we've gotten through everything else."- Pepper sounded half exasperated, half fond and a dash of exhausted.
Hill switched lines, she didn't have time for proper goodbyes till they weren't handling mass exodus because apparently Loki wasn't the evil sibling. If Odin was still alive somewhere she was going to find him, stuff a missile up his ass and demand answers for his clearly abysmal parenting. "Hill." She answered.
-"I've got a situation."- A guilty sounding Steve's voice came over the line.
She stopped her strides down the hall and pinched the bridge of her nose. "What happened?"
-"We secured the General, her main base is secure and we're assisting in clean up."- Steve reported. -"But it seems she was colluding with aliens? Some race called the Confederacy? It might be a group not a race. She clammed up pretty fast. But there was a beacon we hit, and it's in pieces now, but it's likely we broadcasted our location to the aliens."-
Hill wondered at the chances of two alien invasions in one day. Technically one exodus and one possible invasion. "Take General Hale to the New Jersey facility. Continue to cooperate and then bring any alien tech and intel back to the tower."
Five hours, three thousand two hundred and sixty eight Asgardians and it was over. She looked at the exhausted looking Lady Sif. "Is it worth the risk to continue opening the portal?"
"No, we've retrieved everyone from the western shelters." Sif's fists clenched at her sides. "Heimdal will guide those left to safe ground. Everyone of us had our own methods to get civilians out."
Darcy looked up from where she was guzzling what Hill was pretending wasn't pure espresso that had just had caffeine pills dropped in it. "Wait, your plan was to fiddle with one of the Sheep-EEs, hope one of us was in the lab, and then hope we could portal your assigned civilians out?" She blinked. "You're crazy."
"Thor claimed you as his Lightning Sister." She tipped her head towards Jane. "The Lady Jane as his Love. I hoped you would return his feelings, and you have saved us." Sif pressed a hand to her chest. "We are in your debt."
Hill cleared her throat. "Is it possible this Hela will attempt to follow?"
"Not immediately, Thor will unseat her." Sif replied, and clearly she meant it with every fiber of her alien being.
It was...Hill wondered if Sif was even capable of lying. She could feel a headache coming. "Are any of the people in this tower diplomats?"
"I will find someone capable of serving such a function." Sif gave a sharp nod and marched off to go do exactly that. It was impressive professionalism. If half her agents had been that professional her life as Assistant Director would have been far easier.
Hill turned to Darcy and Tony. "Any progress with the alien tech?"
"Well this is possibly a transportation device." Darcy's nose scrunched up. "Did someone tell Steve only mutilated remains were safe? Did he just whack it with his shield till it died? I'm concerned about repressed rage at technology. This baby didn't deserve this."
Tony nodded solemnly from his pile of crushed alien tech. "Past trauma maybe?" The shit.
"He should see a therapist. These babies didn't deserve this." Darcy caressed the side of a twisted piece of metal. There was a horrifyingly actual emotion under the sarcasm.
Tony theatrically sighed. "Tragic really, I'm sure we can build him a robot friend. Exposure therapy is very effective."
"Focus." Hill was going to ignore the inevitable irritating robot sure to be following Steve around. "What type of transportation device?"
Darcy looked at the machine she'd just been petting with disgust. "Same type of tech our alien anthropologist assholes used only for larger distances. It's amateur hour really. I mean the radiation from turning it on alone….."
"Is it safe?" Hill stared at the Starks dubiously. Such intelligence, so little common sense. When she died it would be the fault of a Stark. If Tony spawned again she was taking a vacation. Maybe Nat would join her?
Tony waved his hand. "Eh its current level of gamma radiation is negligible. Wouldn't give a hamster a nose bleed."
"Anyways," Darcy interrupted. "It's got a pre-set frequency, I believe and am probably right, it would transport cargo to the location the Confederacy wants."
Tony took over, his face suddenly grim. "The orb I've got here is recognizably Kree. Sif confirmed. If the Kree wants specific cargo that Hydra would be willing to negotiate over…"
"Inhuman slaves." Darcy finished their conclusion.
Tony's face was sharp, dangerous even. It was unsettling. "This pile of crap was a beacon. We're going to have visitors soon."
Hill's jaw clenched as she processed that. Earth wasn't ready for an invasion. But it would seem they had to be. "Looks like your diplomacy is about to pay off. I'll reach out to my contacts."
"Good." Tony grinned. "Beautiful and capable. Knew I hired you for more than eye candy."
Hill was going to kill him. It would be worth it to strangle him. So worth it.
////
Peter swung himself into Aunt May's office. "Hey! Uh quick question, how would you handle a few thousand alien refugees. Hypothetically."
"Peter, where are the aliens." She deadpanned, looking up over her reading glasses.
He cringed slightly. "Hypothetically in Stark Tower."
"Hill and Potts are organizing things I assume?" One of her eyebrows rose.
Peter nodded eagerly. "Yes, and uh Wanda called out from work sick to help, and uh all the Avengers are helping."
"Why don't you go down to Sal's and pick yourself some pizza for dinner." Aunt May's grabbed her purse.
He breathed out in relief. Aunt May's could fix everything.
////
Darcy considered taking a hammer to the section of the alien transport machine she was looking at. She was going to use it on Steve afterwards. "I'm getting a doctorate in Astrophysics."
"Wait, what?" Jane looked over from where they'd been trying to figure out how to stabilize the portal so they could get more people across if they needed to grab some more refugees.
She grabbed her coffee, clutching it to her chest. "I like my machines, I'm good with them. Better than off brand alien psychopaths who think whatever this monstrosity was is responsible portal travel. But it'd go faster if I knew the astrophysics yahoo. 'Sides I've picked up some from you and Erik."
"But…" Jane paused, her head tilting to the side as she absently grabbed her own mug of coffee, it was the mug with unicorns. "I suppose you're at least at a Master's level already."
Darcy nodded, she'd realized she was well on her way to understanding the crazy science a while ago. "See, and it'd be more useful. I could do more, and the tech'd be totes better if I didn't have to constantly hound you to figure out what shit was supposed to do."
"If you need help just let me know." Jane decided with a nod. Her smile was simple and warm, she believed in her. Which is why Janey was the best friend a gal could ask for.
She beamed at her sister from another mister. "Of course! I expect nothing less, as your minion it's your job to ensure I get the best minion training available."
"I don't think anyone has dreamed you could be anyone's minion." Jane replied dryly.
Darcy grinned. "That's so sweet. But untrue, I've been your loyal minion since undergrad."
"Of course." Jane clearly didn't believe a word out of her mouth. "Pass your findings on whatever that is. I'll see if I can spot anything."
Darcy picked up her Starkpad and passed it over. "I think you might be the most brilliant astrophysicist on any planet except Asgard. And even then I'm side eying their rainbow bridge."
"Please, Earth is years behind the rest of the universe." Jane brushed off with an eye roll while snagging the Starkpad.
She raised a brow. "No really, if this machine works how I think it does it's a crime against actual portal technology. Also alien refugees and possible alien invasion on the same day. Wild."
"At best this Confederacy is days out." Jane mumbled while scrolling through the data. "Wait… does this...have no stabilizing features?"
"None." Darcy agreed. "It's a grab on and hope your fingers and toes don't get chopped off type deal. And open for under three seconds I think."
Jane's hair seemed to practically stand on end, such was her indignation as she kept reading. "It's unstable! Why are there no failsafes!? An explosion could take out a square mile or destroy the fabric of reality!"
"Told you." Darcy replied. Her attention was pulled to the other side of the glass walls where Pietro was very clearly flirting with Sif between errands. "Huh...you know I'm pretty straight, but I see the appeal with Sif of her warrior ladishness."
Jane blinked stupidly, it was a rare look in the lab. "Wait...what?"
"I mean Asgardians are hot. And Sif is hot for the alien race of hotness. I get the appeal." Darcy's brow furrowed.
Jane towards the hallway where Pietro was passing a list, likely the names of the various refugees, to Sif. And damn, go him. Whatever he was laying down was clearly working. "Is that bad?"
"No...no I don't think it is." Darcy hummed. But then focused back on the parts. She used a pair of tongs to pick up a coil that was mostly intact. "The fuel source obviously leaked out, and FRIDAY is still analyzing." She frowned. "But I don't think it's a substance found on Earth."
Jane twitched slightly from where she'd begun to swear under her breath. "I wouldn't be surprised."
Darcy blindly accepted the beverage pushed towards her and downed it. Halfway through it she realized it was decaf. She glared at Pietro as she set the cup down in disgust. "The hell? You dare bring me this swill? It's an abomination, decaf is for the weak."
"You need to take a break. Mrs Parker has weirdly taken control. Which is a good thing, I think she, Hill and Potts are like...terrifying?" Pietro shrugged. "But you need sleep."
She pulled her glasses off and began to clean the lenses. "We have a possible incoming alien invasion."
"Yeah, and this whole building is full of aliens who know all about the Confederacy. Lady Sif already briefed everyone." He looked amused. "You can sleep."
Darcy was going to kill Tony. "I'm gonna kill Tony, not even a 'your work isn't critical Spawn'. It'd have been nice to know." She sighed, perching her glasses back on her face. "I'm not going to be able to sleep unless you spiked that decaf with ambien."
"No, but I'm sure I could be helpful." He grinned, eyebrows wiggling.
She couldn't help it, she snorted while letting him pull her to her feet. "Not going to be 'helping' Lady Sif?"
"The timing of us becoming exclusive may have been unfortunate." He replied easily with a shrug. But no regret or upset. "Unless you're more like your sister than I know?"
She slapped his shoulder. "You're a dog." Her head tilted to the side. "But what the fuck, might as well try everything once and badass alien hotty would be the time to try." Darcy stared at his gaping mouth. "Unless the Lady Sif is uninterested, in which case you're out of luck."
Pietro beamed. "I can promise the Lady Sif will be interested, also I'll return the favor with a dude of your choice in the future."
"Really?" Darcy hooked their arms together. "I think this couple thing is going to go very well for us."
He nodded. "We're awesome, of course it is."
"We can never let anyone find out our first act as a couple was a threesome with an alien." She felt a shudder of terror at whatever Daisy or Tony would do. Peter would probably just squeak and turn red with indignation. Adorable, but please no.
Pietro snorted. "I think I can agree to that."
"Cheers."
Chapter 47: The Great Boogaloo, The Kidnapping of Darcy #2Notes:All hail the pharmacy and allergy meds.
Chapter TextWanda used her powers to pick up the dirty dishes. "I could call out from work?"
"Honey you have your own life. I know you are invested in this, but you still need to keep up with your life. And that means making coffee and studying." May Parker chided gently. The woman reached out and squeezed her shoulder. "Now if you brought some coffee back with you after your shift I'm sure we'd all be grateful."
She bit at her lower lip. It was...she could hear and feel how genuine the woman was. Her powers were growing, she was picking up more and more without trying. It made being around May Parker oddly comforting. Her kindness and love, unquestionably real. "I can feel their fear, sorrow, doubts, all of it. And I know how it is to lose a home to war. I need to help how I can. Even if it's just washing dishes."
"You'll burn out. No matter how important your work is, if you don't care for yourself you'll burn out. And if you burn out you'll do less good than if you'd just given yourself some time and kindness." May wrapped an arm around her and began to pull her away from the Avengers gym where the Asgardian children had just finished lunch.
Wanda looked at the kids. "I can take a leave of absence."
"No you won't. You can help with dinner tonight. But till then you're going to go live your life for yourself. Nobody needs an empath and telepath to get as close to cracking as Daisy was when I first met her."
She suddenly picked up an image of Daisy from May. Bruises, shattered arm bones, curled in on herself like a wounded animal, the pain practically tangible even to May. Wanda swallowed. "OK. Vanilla latte?"
"If you'd be so kind." May wafted fondness.
Wanda chewed on the eraser of her pencil. "Did you know group punishment is a war crime?"
"Excuse me?" Amanda looked up from where she was studying her statistics homework.
She kept her voice low, they were in a library afterall. "According to the Geneva Conventions "No general penalty, pecuniary or otherwise, shall be inflicted upon the population on account of the acts of individuals for which they cannot be regarded as jointly and severally responsible."
"Well damn, nobody told my elementary school teachers that. Or they were unrepentant psychopaths. But then the cost of survival." Amanda replied seriously, though her mood sparkled with amusement despite her general boredom.
Wanda hummed. "The library was a good idea."
"Hey, you've got stuff going on in your life." Amanda offered out their contraband bag of chocolate. "But you still got to study, and honestly my grades could use the boost too."
She looked down at her work. "What do you think of aliens?"
"Ok….new topic but I'll bite." Amanda cocked her head to the side slightly. "I think they're dangerous. I mean if I think too hard about it I'll end up rocking back and forth in my shower hyperventilating?"
Wanda raised a brow. "But you have a poster of Thor?"
"I mean he's awesome. But we're kinda bugs to them right? I mean if he wanted to he could just electrocute us all. Act of god, annihilation of us simple folk. It's why we need the Avengers isn't it? They make us feel safe. Cause like they're there to protect us. But...what happens if one of them changes their mind?"
She cocked her head to one side, various jittering half finished thoughts and feelings flickering across her friend's mind. "That's why you like Spiderman and Quake. They feel human to you, even if Quake is part alien."
"Well yeah?" Amanda felt confusion. "Don't you feel the same? I mean they're our heros, they're ours." Her eyes narrowed. "If they hadn't of broken up. I mean they lived together!"
Wanda's voice was dry. "She could just be on a mission for SHIELD."
"Why not say anything then? She just comes out as bi, then Spiderman has Stark hanging off of him." Amanda scoffed. "I mean she called him the best man she knew and then he's cheating on her!"
She wondered when hearing about the latest emotional turmoil over her girlfriend and her girlfriend's brother became comforting and amusing? Wanda hated to admit it was a relief to be back in the normal world. Of course May Parker had been right. Woman's affection was more than she deserved. "You're still subscribed to Spiderman's social media."
"What can I say, I still hold out hope he'll come to his senses and win Quake back." Amanda sighed before perking up. "Also he's live streaming his patrol today. Like seeing what his perspective of swinging around New York looks like is amazing."
Wanda hadn't realized Peter was doing that today...made sense though. His acrobatics were impressive and probably the only thing he could do without being lynched for being a cheating bastard at the moment. Besides, he mostly just swung around and did tricks. "Where's he swinging around today?"
"I don't know." Amanda picked up her phone and pulled up the channel, clicking it on.
Wanda stared at the footage. "I've got to go, watch my books."
////
Pepper video conferenced in from the DC SI office. "The last of the Asgardian refugees we're sheltering in our LA facilities arrived last night."
-"SHIELD has protocols for settling alien refugees quietly."- Hill spoke up from her office in New York. -"The problem is the numbers."-
Dr Foster cleared her throat from the lab she'd been half living in. -"Darcy and I confirmed that Asgard doesn't exist. It's uninhabited debri. Everything we've sent has come back with conclusive images. It's going to be a new asteroid field. Nothing salvageable, at least not with our current capabilities."-
"So we have to hope Thor and the rest of Asgard survived somewhere." Pepper forced the horror at an entire world destroyed to the side. Especially one far more powerful than Earth. "We have to assume the refugees are here permanently."
Tony looked hungover and sleep deprived in the video of him from Norway. -"Sif and I have a meeting with the Prime Minister tonight. With my winning personality and her...unflinching optimism it should be a snap."-
Pepper really should have gone instead of Tony, but she needed to be in DC for when the news got out that SI was protecting thousands of vulnerable Asgardian civilians. "Rhodey is there?"
-"Your lack of faith is appalling."- Tony smirked that stupidly attractive smirk that made her want to stab him and kiss him at the same time. -"But the babysitter is here and ready to ruin the fun."-
Hill's voice was dry. -"Small mercies. In regards to Hydra, Director Mace has most of his forces chasing down the remnants that served General Hale. Steve and Natasha landed in England and are discussing how to prepare for the Confederacy arriving with Wakanda."-
-"I'm sorry, how is the country of sheep herders going to help in the fight against aliens? Seems a bit desperate to me."- Tony cut in. -"Hammer's failures are futuristic impossibilities compared to any peasant army Wakanda can make."-
Hill's eyes were sharp, clearly she was getting as much sleep as the rest of them. Which was to say almost none. -"We need any allies we can get. And their new King T'Challa has promised to bring an end to their isolationist policies. And need I remind you we have a humanitarian crisis, an imminent alien invasion, the legal rights of enhanced still being legislated, a SHIELD team in the future who apparently need to stop an apocalypse, and Hydra, a brewing gang war, and that's the threats that are imminent. We have fifty others that if we don't address now will turn into equally large issues in a matter of months."-
"We're aware of the scope of the danger facing us." Pepper cut in before Tony could rise to the challenge. It helped to know making light of danger was how he coped with it. "Is SHIELD having success in securing known inhumans so they can't be kidnapped by the Confederacy?"
Hill looked like she wanted to sigh or just do something showing her exhaustion. Instead she replied promptly. -"For what it's worth they're trying. Without Hydra attempting to hand them over it's the more publicly visible ones in the most danger."-
-"I'm sure SHIELD's effort will be comforting to the inhumans who get grabbed."- Tony's voice was biting.
Pepper opened her mouth to redirect the conversation to how to track alien ships that might have portal technology or speed capabilities that would make any warning almost impossible. She was interrupted by her office door being slammed open and Morse striding in. "Morse?"
"We have to move, unknown armed individuals just breached the lobby." Morse grabbed her upper arm and hauled her to her feet and dragged her out of the office.
Pepper flicked her wrist, her bracelet transforming into a taser. "Darcy thought it'd be a good peace offering." She explained at Morse's surprised expression.
Morse nodded. "Smart, stay behind me." And then she was leading her straight for the nearest panic room.
As they came around the corner they both stopped as they spotted the approaching men. Pepper sucked in a breath and braced herself.
Morse slid out two metal batons from...somewhere. And then kept striding towards the attackers.
What followed was...a disproportional, brief, one-sided, and incredibly violent series of actions. The dull thuds of Morse's batons slamming into flesh filled the hallway. The last attacker slid down the wall with a wheeze of pain. Morse looked...disappointed there weren't more men to beat senseless. "Come on."
"Work time resentments building up?" Pepper asked while carefully stepping over an unconscious body.
Morse just smirked. "What can I say, retirement from field work doesn't agree with me."
"You don't say." Pepper's nose scrunched up as she saw the AIM logo on one man's shoulder patch. Of course, one of the fifty other problems they didn't have time for. "At least we can finish the conference from the safe room."
////
Darcy decided she was sick of being kidnapped. Or well attempts of kidnapping. She tased a goon with a yelp while Hunter punched another one in the face. "I knew the rent prices for this building were too low!"
"Complain about the trap using cheap lab space for rent after we escape." Hunter bit out shooting another goon in the knee. "Come on! Get to the bloody car!"
She tased a goon while blowing some hair out of her face. "That's easier said than done! I'm not a badass if you haven't noticed."
"Move!" Hunter's hand grabbed her shoulder and shoved her towards the stairs.
Darcy stumbled. "I'm going, I'm going!" She skidded to a halt at the sight of more goons. "Never mind."
"Fuck!" Hunter reloaded his gun. "Tase anyone who gets past me."
Her eyes widened, huh, they'd sent a lot more people this time. "I don't have that many taser rounds!"
"Well kick some of them in the dick." Hunter snapped while shooting. "GET BACK!"
Darcy braced herself while raising her taser. Right. Well, at least they weren't shooting at them? So kidnapping attempt not murder. She could survive that.
One of the goons, that was almost to them, stopped, blue veins spreading across his skin, and then he dropped.
Hunter grabbed a guy and slammed him into the wall. "We've got company."
"I can see that!" Darcy snapped while tasing a guy.
And then Darcy spotted their help. "Holy shit."
"Sup!" Daisy replied, shooting another goon while choking out a different one. Weird leather jacket reaching down to nearly her knees, grey wraps around her forearms, dirty patched up clothing, Quake mask, but so painfully clearly Daisy. "Long time no see."
Darcy ducked out of the way of a goon and then tased another. "THREE FUCKING MONTHS!"
"I was kind of held up." Daisy laughed while flipping a man over her shoulder, and then shooting four more.
Hunter gave an amused scoff while knocking down the last of the goons. "Good to see ya Johnson."
"Thanks for sending Fitz." Daisy holstered her gun.
Darcy rolled her eyes. "Fuck that." And then lunged at her sister, hugging her as tightly as she possibly could. "Thank Thor you're back."
"I've missed you too." Daisy hugged her back almost painfully tight. She smelled different, very dusty. "Come on, these idiots broke a ton of people out of jail."
Darcy refused to fully let go of her sister. "When did you get back?"
"Uh...six hours ago? I might have stolen a quinjet to get back here." Daisy's lips twitched upwards at that admittance.
Darcy's eyes narrowed, something was wrong. Really wrong. "Daisy...are you bleeding somewhere?"
"No, just tired." Daisy squeezed her arm.
She couldn't help the awful wrongness of this. "What's code purplenurbles?"
"Terminators and the Matrix. We drank way too much bubble gum vodka." Daisy raised a brow as if to say 'really, you think I'm an imposter'.
Darcy let out a sigh of relief. "Well that's good to know."
"Wait, we're doing identity checks? Are there life like robots again?" Hunter looked back and forth between them.
Darcy shook her head. "No, just...what happened in the future?"
"Jailbreak, more AIM goons." Daisy waived at the stairwell from which there was the thudding of footsteps.
Darcy winced. "Right, interrogating later."
"Come on." Daisy firmly pulled Darcy between her and Hunter. "If we get to the street we have more options."
Darcy nodded and focused on not tripping over her own feet as they moved for the elevator. "So future, how bad we talking?"
"I identify with Spartucus more than I ever wanted to." Daisy replied as she shot over her shoulder at a goon bursting out of the door.
Her mouth tightened, trauma, it was trauma she was reading as wrong. Fuck. "The rest of the team made it back?"
"Yeah we all made it back. Director Mace can handle it. They have a better chance of avoiding the future without me." Daisy's manner was uncomfortably grim. "Hey, no lemons or blue aliens. I have a good feeling about this elevator."
"Really?" Hunter stared at Daisy in disbelief while slamming the close elevator button. "SHIELD has the weirdest shit happen." He raised his gun firing into the hall as the doors closed.
Daisy loaded a new clip of dendrotoxin into her gun. "Can't argue that."
"So uh...what's the plan?" Darcy asked as the elevator descended.
Daisy bumped their shoulders together. "We steal a ride for you, and you get back to the tower. I'll help with the jailbreak."
"Uh, I'm not the one who got kidnapped. You're not going out there." Darcy glared at her sister. "Don't be stupid."
Hunter grumbled under his breath. "No, you're the one they're trying to kidnap now. Fucking Starks."
"I resent that." Darcy whacked him. "New plan, that doesn't involve you racing off to fight whoever or whatever is out there serving as the distraction for the Great Boogaloo, The Kidnapping of Me, Take Two."
Daisy had a half grin as the elevator door opened. "I've missed you, remind me to tell you about the evil alien makeup, I have thoughts. For now we need to find a car."
There was a ding and then Daisy strode out, gun held high shooting the goons in the lobby. She kicked the locked front door open and then turned, grinning over her shoulder. "Keep up."
"Only you Johnson." Hunter chuckled as he hauled her out of the elevator and out after Daisy.
Darcy only stumbled slightly, honestly did no one respect that civilians couldn't fight their way out of things looking fabulous? And fuck Daisy just marching about like nothing was weird and she hadn't just fucking appeared by like some bizzare magic. Even if Daisy had designed their communication channels, and would have picked up on Darcy's emergency beacon if she'd been connected. And honestly no this was exactly what Darcy should have expected. Maybe it was because it wasn't even more dramatic she was feeling something was off?
As she came out through the door she winced in some minor sympathy as Daisy throat punched a guy, kneed him in the dick so hard he lifted three inches off the ground, and then elbowed him in the back of the head, sending him crashing to the ground. "That looked like it hurt."
"Hunter how do you feel about a bike?" Daisy called over her shoulder while flipping someone into the sidewalk at a...painful looking angle.
Hunter shot a guy in a tac suit. "Bike is sounding real good right about now."
"I don't know about you, but peddling out of danger doesn't fill me with confidence!" Darcy yelped while tasing a guy coming out of one of the six fucking vans blocking the road, and clearly filled up with douchecannoos here to kidnap innocent scientists.
Daisy bent backwards, nearly in half, bullets passing harmlessly past her before returning fire and dropping five guys. She reloaded. "Go, I've got this."
"Got it." Hunter pulled Darcy towards a motorcycle parked between a prius and a coop. It was only mildly concerning how fast he had the thing hotwired. He swung a leg over. "Hop on Stark."
Darcy winced, looking back at her sister who was...beating the absolute shit out of some thugs. It was actually making her feel bad for the AIM goons. Right, Daisy would be fine. She could help more if she could get on comms. "Daisy, I swear to Thor if you go anywhere other than straight home after this I'll wring your neck myself!"
"Go!" Daisy laughed, her eyes alight with glee at fighting. She had a man's head trapped under her arm, using his own gun to shoot his comrades as his arms pinwheeled.
She nodded and climbed on the bike behind Hunter. He hit the throttle and they squealed off. It was as they were about to go around the corner, away from the chaos on the street that Darcy looked back one last time. Which is when it hit her. "She's not using her powers."
Darcy's arms tightened around Hunter to keep herself from doing something stupid. Like trying to make them go back. Because if Daisy wasn't using her powers something was really, really wrong. It didn't matter that she knew Daisy was basically a less elegant Black Widow trainee. Or that her sister was clearly kicking the asses of the goons. She had to hope. Because she'd just get in the way. God damn it.
////
Peter webbed and then hung a man from a light post. "Yuri! Darcy's becon just went off."
"Go, I've got this." Pietro skidded to a halt next to him.
Yuri glanced between the two of them. "Listen to Speedy here."
"Wanda should be here soon." Pietro added. "If we find where ever Rhino's gotten to she can fuck him up."
Peter let out a relieved huff. "Thank you." He sprayed a web and then lept, trusting his weight to it, as he swung himself towards the building Darcy had been looking into.
As he arched through the air he sprayed webbed nets at several escaped prisoners. It was supposed to be a brief, easy day before all the alien stuff happened. Good excuse to get some good PR before just...whatever doom and gloom everyone was panicking over. And he'd been excited about the live stream of his swinging around today. He called it 'spiderpro' in his head. It didn't even register he hadn't stopped the video when the jailbreak had started. To be fair he was rather distracted.
Slinging himself over a building he rushed, head first over a thirty story financial building. As he crested over the top he took in the area in front of the building Darcy had been walking through today.
The road was chaos.
There were six vans in the street, men in black tactical gear in various stages of unloading. It looked like nearly fifty guys were there. A surprising number of them slumped in various positions, the familiar blue dendrotoxin veins showing. Absolutely kicking goon ass was a figure in a lot of leather. Something seemed familiar about them. Maybe Darcy had a new bodyguard?
He was arching towards the fight, when there was a great crashing sound from up the street. Peter looked up as he landed on the roof of a van. "Ah...well that's a naughty Rhino." Peter absently webbed a group of goons and then shot off towards the orange jumpsuit dressed Russian giant of a man throwing cars.
As he whizzed past he noticed Matrix looking guys slipping out of an alleyway. Was that guy blue? He didn't have time to notice more, Rhino had just chucked a car at him.
"HEY! Rhino!" Peter caught a car with his feet, arms shooting out and shooting webs to buildings on either side of the building. He attached his ends of the web to the car, and then flipped over the top of it. "Does your mother know what you're up to?"
The man turned, his breath audible. "Ah, the tiny spider is here. This time I will squash you."
"That's not very nice." Peter was deeply relieved to see the lack of armor and giant horn. Still a giant terrifying enhanced dude. Less risk of impalement.
He aimed and shot a web straight in the center of Rhino's chest. Peter was moving fast as he used it to shoot himself straight for the man, only low. With his free hand he sprayed a dendrotoxin web straight into the man's face before zipping between his legs.
Sliding out behind the man, he webbed Rhino's right calf, releasing his hold of the web attached to Rhino's chest he swapped to dendrotoxin cartridges in that wrist.
"Have you considered therapy?" Peter quipped while using his momentum into a swing around the man's legs, turning the webline into a snare. As he swung around Rhino, he started using his other hand to empty out as many dendrotoxin webs as he could in seconds.
Rhino's arm swung out, snapping the dragline. "HOLD STILL!"
"That seems kinda stupid." Peter landed feet first on the side of a car, and then was pushing back off, a web hitting Rhino's other calf, and swinging himself around the other ways. As he swung he kept releasing more webbing at the man's legs.
Rhino fought against the growing webs around his legs. He roared, overbalanced, and came crashing into the ground. The asphalt shook with the weight of the man, cracks spreading out from him.
Peter backflipped from his position, somersaulting through the air and landing on top of the man. He slammed his fists into either side of Rhino's neck, the tiny dendrotoxin spines burying themselves into the man's neck.
Pulling back he panted. "Huh, bigger they are harder they fall was serious then." His head snapped around to where he'd left a bodyguard having to hold off the AIM guys there to grab Darcy. He blinked. Sure the person had clearly been kicking ass but...well they had just whacked the last of them in the head with a fire extinguisher. Just lumps of injured, unconscious...hopefully not dead, goons.
But standing there, unconscious goons laying around them, dirty leather jacket, weird dirty layered clothing but still clearly and unmistakably was Daisy. She looked like some kind of avenging agent from the movies or something.
Peter couldn't help the pained gut punch of a sound that was wrenched out of his chest. He forgot his webs, that he could swing faster, he didn't care. He just took off at a dead sprint for his sister. It barely felt like his feet were hitting the ground. He couldn't wait, just launching himself forward.
She was firm and real as she caught him, the shock of him slamming into her reverberating between the two of them. He didn't even notice the sobbing sound he made as he hugged her, his powers sticking his arms around her. "You're back!"
"Missed you too." She murmured, hugging him back.
Peter felt like he could breathe for the first time in months. An awful tight, sick feeling in his chest released, sheer relief rushing through him. It was like all the worry, stress, just all of it just vanished. So it was rude when his spidersense blared at him.
Daisy reacted first, twisting both of them out of the way of a hurtling metal net. "Run!"
"NOT HAPPENING!" He hung onto her shoulder webbing at the Matrix looking elf dude. Frankly that was sloppy forgetting about the third group on the ground. He yanked, sending the guy spinning head over heels into the ground.
Daisy moved, shooting another one in the face, only the alien was already moving, the bullet uselessly passing through the air where his head had just been. She then slammed her gun straight into his face, dropping him like a rock. "What the actual hell is happening!"
"Alien's crashing a jailbreak to distract from an attempt at kidnapping Darcy." Peter didn't let go of Daisy as he spun, heel kicking a blue alien in the face. "Fun times ya' know!"
She grabbed his arm, using his weight to swing her elbow into another alien's face. As she landed from the movement, she reached up catching a metal projectile heading straight for his head.
It lit up orange, Peter's spidersense wasn't just blaring, it was screaming now.
"Mother fucker!" Daisy swore while dropping the device and hauling him in protectively, and then they were gone.
Chapter 48: Space SucksNotes:I think I might be back to a twice week update schedule.....
Chapter TextIf Daisy had had a plan after returning to her own time, it'd been vague. Still, it'd mostly involved getting home, away from the pain and danger and to get help from someone who wasn't the team to prevent the end of the world. She'd straight up refused to let them take the chip out of her neck. No powers, no breaking the planet like an egg. It'd seemed like a no brainer. As she realized she and Peter were being portaled by aliens she found that she was regretting that decision.
As they thudded on a metal floor, she knew. Space, she really hated she could now tell that they were in space. She rolled to her feet. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted the Kree with a cattle prod.
Daisy moved, sweeping the Kree's legs out from under him. As he fell she grabbed his cattle prod, twisted it out of his hands, and shot him in the face.
Panting she hopped to her feet. "You ok?"
"I think I'm going to be sick." Peter groaned rolling onto his back. "What was that?"
Daisy looked around, holding cell, not an actual cell. "Is there a reason aliens just tried to kidnap you while AIM tried to grab Darcy?"
"Uh Cap smashed an alien beacon Hydra was using to negotiate with some evil aliens called the Confederacy. Not sure why they were coming for me?" Peter accepted her hand.
She pulled him up. "Right, well if they've got Kree members like blue over there, that's probably bad news. Considering working with Hydra I'm gonna go with super bad news." Daisy crouched down and started patting the unconscious Kree for anything useful. "Think you can break the door open?"
"I got it." He pulled his fist back and punched the metal door so hard it dented outwards.
Daisy slid the Kree's knife into her belt, reloading her gun. Damn, last magazine she had on herself. She looked up at Peter who was prying the door open with great effort. He was huffing and puffing as he used his whole body to do it. "So alien invasion. We take down as many as we can, and get what intel we can before Darcy portals us out."
"Wait, Darcy! She's still in the building!" Peter looked at her alarmed.
She grinned, patting his shoulder. "She's fine, I got her and Hunter out. They should be at the tower in around fifteen minutes. You still have the beacon in your suit, right?"
"Yeah, right that makes sense." He hopped out of the way of the hole he'd made. "Probably good I'm not saving Darcy."
Daisy frowned as she climbed out of the hole in the door. She glanced down the hall checking it was clear, she turned back to look at him. "Why on earth is that a good thing?"
"The media thinks I cheated on you with Darcy and you've been gone because you're heart broken." He explained while hopping through the hole and into the hall beside her.
She was kind of baffled by that. But god it was reassuring to have him at her shoulder. "That's rough kid."
"Not a kid." He grumbled, but he gently bumped their shoulders together.
Daisy grinned, scrunching her nose up at him. "Excuse me, older sister, that makes you a kid if I say you are one."
"Lame." He booed. His head swiveled. "Uh..what direction do we go?"
Her shoulders dropped slightly as she looked at the metal hallway and artificial light. "I'm getting real tired of space and being kidnapped by aliens. Come on." She picked a direction and started striding down the hall. If it was the wrong direction it was the wrong direction.
"How did you get back? Darcy and Tony made a time machine to go and rescue you if you weren't back soon." Peter asked while following behind her as if what he was saying wasn't insane.
Daisy blinked. "They made a time machine?"
"Well we weren't going to trust the aliens that you were going to make it back." Peter said as if it was as obvious as the sun rising or setting. "I mean a strange alien kidnaps and sends you to the future to go save the world from a future apocalypse and we're supposed to just trust that's going to go fine?"
She felt her throat tightened with emotion. Fortunately for her not bursting into tears, she spotted an alien with pointy ears screeching around the corner. It was therapeutic to close line the alien and slam her new dagger through his heart. "Time travel sucks. Space slavery sucks. And we're not going to let that future happen."
"Right." His voice squeaked. "Did you just stab him?"
Daisy felt sharp. "We're on an enemy vessel that just attempted to kidnap you. Like hell I'm letting them put one finger on you." She looked up at him. "Don't compromise yourself, but fuck no killing if they're going to hurt you."
"Oh." Peter fell quiet as they moved around the corner. "Is uh...space slavery?"
She had to resist touching the control chip embedded in the side of her neck. "If Earth falls the Kree Empire will take advantage." Daisy knew she was showing perhaps too many teeth. She grabbed a second alien who'd just popped out of a room and stabbed her knife straight through his eye. Shoving him off the knife she kept talking. "Enoch was surprised I came back to New York. Thinks it might have changed the time stream actually."
"Right, so Darcy problem for when we get off this ship?" He webbed an alien to the side of the wall.
Daisy nodded. "Probably. Which, why do people think you cheated on me with her?"
"I rescued her from a kidnapping attempt like two months ago." He shot a web, blocking off the hallway to their back. "And you were gone, so it uh didn't go away. Then Darcy has her weird whatever they are thing with Pietro. I think they might be dating for real now... So I might have punched him in the face over a misunderstanding."
She couldn't help it, she laughed. It was so benignly non world ending. "So the world thinks you're romantically involved with both of us? Sorry about the incest angle helping with keeping your idenity covered. That really sucks though."
"You suck." He hopped up onto the ceiling. "Shouldn't there be more aliens?"
Daisy knelt down by the closed door they'd reached. She yanked the key pad's pannal off and started hacking into the system. "They don't realize we're here yet. When the lights start flashing it'll get fun."
"Right, aliens. Uh...tips?" Peter sounded kind of nervous.
She gave him her most comforting smile. "Kid, aliens are not as scary once you've punched one in the face. You're stronger, and faster than any of them are going to be. Think bodybuilder on steroids. Unenhanced people can take them with training. You're going to make them look like toddlers. Just watch my back."
"I can do that." He took a deep calming breath. "Uh...is there a reason you're not using your powers?"
Daisy grimaced, but pulled her hair back with one hand showing the chip in her neck. "Inhumans challenge Kree supremacy, so forced enslavement. Guy who did it is very, very dead...also not born yet? It's been a terrible three months."
"I'm sorry that's WHAT!?" Peter yelped in sheer horror.
She grabbed his shoulder. "We can worry about it later. For now I can still kick your ass, powers or no powers. Don't go getting a big head baby bro. The idiots on the other side should be scared of me. Fully trained agent, remember."
"I managed to get a hit in during training once." He protested weakly, but he was also clearly checking to make sure she wasn't injured.
Daisy raised a brow. "I'm going to be shooting a gun." She raised her sidearm. "Just stay behind me and cover my back."
"I know the drill." Peter adjusted his suit's wrists ever so slightly. "Why can't we just hide somewhere and call the Avengers? This feels like an Avenger job. You could just call them."
Daisy rolled her eyes. "We're already here, we're not waiting around for the Avengers. And why am I the one who should call them?"
"Uh cause you're dating one?" Peter stared at her like it was obvious. "I mean I have seen way too much of you two getting all handsey. It's gross."
She snickered, although...god Wanda was going to have every right to strangle her for vanishing for three months. "Come on. One. Two. Three." She hit the last button and the door whooshed open.
////
Peter was very much trying not to panic. His sister had a SLAVE CHIP IN HER HEAD! He suddenly understood how this life changed people because he was furious that anyone would dare do that to her. Fuck that! But now wasn't the time. Their alien captors clearly knew they were here now.
He webbed another one to the wall. "So uh, just real quick do we have a plan for if they try to lay eggs in us? Cause I don't want an alien bursting out of my stomach."
"Haven't met any that do that in real life." Daisy replied while blocking a punch and then stabbing her knife into the side of the alien's neck. It was...he was pretending he wasn't noticing the trail of bodies she was leaving behind them in the hallway. It was one thing to know his sister was a terrifying badass without her powers, it was another to see it.
Peter punched a guy in front of Daisy. The guy did not last long. "So that a no or yes to them existing?"
"No idea. Apparently giant space snails are a popular delicacy." Daisy spun, kicking an alien so hard his head snapped back. She dropped, sweeping it's legs out from under it. Then she was moving forward. There was a wet crunching sound as she stomped down on it's throat. "Also guns are like not popular with aliens? I have no idea why."
Peter only cringed slightly while blocking an attack aimed at Daisy. He webbed the alien to the ceiling, before sliding into an attack on the next guy. Which damn, where were all these guys coming from. "I regret complaining there weren't more aliens."
"Just be glad they're not all Kree." Daisy was panting, clearly the combat from now and earlier was wearing her down.
He webbed a guy coming in towards Daisy straight into the wall. "At least this is the right direction? More bad guys means closer to the important places right?"
"Almost certainly." Daisy raised her gun and dropped five aliens. Each shot hitting straight between the eyes. She lowered her gun. "Right, see those big doors, we get through those and I think we'll be on the bridge. If we have a chance of making the aliens in there stop long enough to talk we want them to do it. The more time we waste the closer rescue is. And we need as much intel as possible."
Peter nodded. "Babble and keep them busy till Darcy realizes something bad happened to us and portals us back to earth. I can do that. I've been told I can be very frustrating."
"Spending time with Detective Yuri while I've been gone?" Daisy asked while ripping open the control panel for the door and starting to hack into it...because she apparently knew enough of whatever alien language they spoke to be able to hack their systems.
He started putting up as much webbing as possible to cover their backs. "She doesn't appreciate Spidercop. But I'll win her over. My voices are hilarious."
"You certainly make stake outs far less boring." Daisy replied as she acted like she wasn't nearly tired enough to keel over. Actually her nose was sluggishly bleeding. It was alarming, but clearly she wasn't going to mention it and now probably wasn't the time?
Peter couldn't help taking a quick glance over her, again. This couldn't go on much longer. Someone or thing was going to get a lucky shot in and she'd be down. "We could wait here for a second, get your breath back and everything."
"While I fully intend to nap for a week once we get back to earth, now isn't the time." She hissed as the control panel sparked, and then the doors were opening.
Daisy was on her feet, gun raised as she immediately stepped in front of him. Protective to a fault.
It was clearly the bridge of the ship. Standing imperiously in the center of the room was an alien. His skin was dark, authority and rigid control radiating from him. He was one of the sorts who constantly looked like they were staring down their nose at you. Also looked like a dominatrix version of a Matrix character. "What is with the Matrix look?"
"Ah, Spiderman and Quake." The man stared at them. Twenty others along the sides of the room. They were clearly outnumbered, and no hall to funnel them one or two at a time. So not good. The alien continued. "My name is Qovas, leader of the Remorath and their representative on the ruling council of the Confederacy."
Daisy didn't lower her gun. "I'd say it was a pleasure to meet you, but that'd be a lie."
"I've heard a lot about you Quake, while I intended to acquire Spiderman it is fortuitous you came with him. Impressive to have made it so far, even if your weapon of choice is so primitive." He looked at the gun like it was gum on the bottom of his boot.
She sounded in control, like they weren't surrounded, outnumbered, and she was clearly tiring. "It is effective though."
"Not the weapon for a true warrior." Qovas's voice was sharp. "But still, your General Hale spoke highly of you. Loyal, determined, and powerful. I was quite interested in acquiring you."
Daisy's head tilted slightly. "Slavery then. Let me guess, gladiatorial fights for profit in down time, and forced soldiers in your conflicts the rest of the time. Not to mention easy to sell for a profit if you need cash."
"Indeed. Tell me, do you think your planet is prepared for the Mad Titan Thanos's arrival?" Qovas asked, clearly believing he was in control despite the gun aimed at his head. "Is the price of gravitonium and a handful of Inhumans too much to ask for our protection from certain destruction?"
Daisy made a sound of disbelief. "You're a slaver who ran from your homeworld. What makes you think I'll buy a lie as blatant as that? Protect the earth? You're here to pick over the remains for profit. Scavenger scum the likes of which I'm going to enjoy getting rid of, no matter how many honor duels you've won." She gave a pointed look at the sparkling rocks on his jacket.
"I see you're familiar with the Confederacy. A pity, Hydra was so arrogant it was barely worth the effort to gain their agreement." Qovas spoke, clearly dismissing Hydra as chumps.
Peter did not like this, he did not like it at all. But apparently dick measuring contest was how Daisy intended to get intel out of him.
Daisy lowered her gun. "Why now? Thanos has made his intentions to invade earth clear for going on five years now."
"You don't know?" Qovas looked ever so slightly amused. "He covets the Infinity Stones. And he's left his throne to take what he wants."
Daisy nodded. "Good to know what he wants, makes things easier. You have a time frame? Or are we to the part where you threaten to send your men at us, I counter with a challenge to a duel after insulting your alien dick, and then I kill you."
"I think not, you're clearly tired." His eyes pointedly flicked to the trickle of blood leaking from her nose. "One as powerful as you, reduced to common weapons? You must be far more injured than you are playing at. Or are you so arrogant as to stand as earth's champion despite your inevitable loss?"
Peter took a half step forward. "I'll fight."
"No." Daisy's arm snapped in front of him, preventing him from stepping past her. She tipped her chin up. "You're not completely wrong. But Earth's champion? As if earth would fold simply because of the loss of a single duel."
Qovas seemed to almost look at Daisy with the slightest sliver of respect. "Then you admit you would lose. There's no need to die. You and your companion submit, there is no need for further bloodshed. You must know you'd be treated well, afterall you are both quite valuable."
"You've never dealt with humans before have you?" Daisy's voice was sharp, cutting really. "We're a species that will fight to the bitter end for no promise of victory, no promise of life, just for the simple fact we refuse to lose. I'd rather die than let you try to enslave myself or my brother. But I've fought a lot of battles." Her face was iron. "I haven't lost yet."
Qovas began to take off his coat, revealing his two shortswords attached to his arms beneath the fabric.
Peter's eyes flicked to the movement where Daisy's hand was beating out instructions in morse code against her thigh. It was less comforting than she probably thought it was. But it was simple. She was sure she was going to win. He was to stay back, even if she looked like she would lose. His teeth ground together. "Is there another way?"
"Not in this situation." Daisy's voice was tight as she dropped her empty gun on the ground, pulling out the knife she'd stolen back when they'd first arrived on the ship. She looked at him. "I have this."
He grimaced under his mask, but gave a sharp nod. "I don't like it."
"Noted, I promise you can lecture me all about it when we get back home." Her lips twitched slightly. But then her face fell serious again as she stepped forward. "I'm having a very bad day, let's see you try to beat me."
Qovas's mouth thinned. "It's a shame to kill one as valuable as you, but with your lack of respect, inevitable."
////
Wanda glared at the stupid, live feed from Peter fucking Parker's spider mask. "Do you have a lock on their position?"
"We've never had to lock onto a gps beacon in orbit above the planet before!" Darcy snapped from where she was wrenching a part of the portal generator tighter.
Doctor Foster spoke up. "The math has to be correct, we'll have one chance at surprise."
She felt her eyes burning red as she saw on the screen Daisy barely missing being skewered, again. It was clear Daisy was losing. "She's not going to last much longer."
"Ready!" Foster slapped a sheet of math that looked like sheer gibberish on a table next to Darcy. "I'll enter, you adjust."
Darcy grabbed the sheet and started doing...something to the honestly creepy looking portal machine. "Once you're through, kick that asshole alien's ass, and make Peter turn off the damn live stream. Breaking viewing records or not it needs to stop before I go grey before I turn thirty."
"I can do that." Wanda glanced at the various equipment. "We're sure it's only the one ship?"
Bucky grimaced from where he was removing every scrap of paper in Foster's way. "That any of Stark's satellites have picked up."
Wanda could feel his frustration at being useless in the face of combat. It was better than the dizzying fluttering of Foster's mind. The woman always made her feel motion sick, her mind like the rapid beats of an insect's wings. Perhaps it was due to the way she viewed the world being so different than anyone Wanda had ever encountered before? Still her mind was the last thing she needed to be connecting to.
Her bond to Pietro was alight with the adrenaline rush he was feeling as he helped clean up the jail break. Not helpful, and Darcy was...well Wanda and Darcy had quite a bit in common in how they felt about the situation. Only Darcy didn't have enhanced abilities with which to bitch slap the alien that'd just sliced Daisy's arm with his sword. "Darcy!"
"ONE MINUTE!" Darcy twisted a dial, adjusting the angle one of the arms of the generator was at.
Wanda hissed as she saw through Peter's eyes as the fight continued to turn against Daisy.
And then Darcy was scrambling backwards while shouting, "Go! GO!"
The portal came to life, and then Wanda was striding through the damn thing and out onto the bridge of the Confederacy ship. Her powers crackled, seizing every alien in the room and slamming them into the walls with as much force as possible. She spun to stop whatever farce of an honor duel was happening only to pause.
The alien, Qovas was on his knees, Daisy's knife embedded to the hilt in his chest. Daisy herself was bleeding from several gashes.
"How?" He managed to croak as he visibly drained of life.
Daisy had to know Wanda was there, but she didn't look away from the man. "You thought you'd won."
Qovas coughed, blood dripping from his lips. "Thanos will raze this planet to the ground. You included."
"You underestimate earth." Daisy bared her teeth. "Let him try." She shoved, the man's dying body to the side, one hand pressing on what was clearly a shallow stab wound to her side. Daisy raised a hand. "Sup."
Peter practically materialized by her side, slinging her other arm over his shoulders, he moved so fast to her side. "Do you need anything webbed shut till we can get to help?"
"I need stitches not surgery." Daisy groaned, but she still smiled at Wanda. "Think we have time for us to set this ship for self-destruct?"
Wanda could have cried as she let her powers connect her to Daisy. "We have five minutes before Darcy can reopen the portal to get us off." She glared at Peter. "And turn your live stream off!"
"Wait, what?" Peter blinked, or his mask blinked, same difference.
Daisy winced, holding her hand still to her bleeding side. "But we're in space? How on earth would the signal not have died by now?"
"Tell that to idiot Starks who make and do things that don't make any sense." Wanda replied completely exasperated. "Do you think you could keep from being kidnapped by aliens for a whole hour?"
Peter was frantically waving his hand, clearly doing something with the holographic controls only he could see.
Daisy smiled, and it was genuine. "I'll try my best. Gotta say, space sucks."
"Good."