Chapter Text
“Hello, Bruce.”
“What are you doing here, Betty?” Bruce blurted.
The question wasn’t harsh or demanding, more desperate than anything else. It wasn’t even as though Bruce had intended on leading with it. He’d intended on being polite, to greet her, perhaps even ask how she was. But it kind of just forced its way out his mouth, the urgency of needing that answered overriding everything else in his head.
“I should have come before this,” Betty replied and it was easy to see how nervous she was in the way that her eyes darted about and the way her hands played with her skirt. “I know that. And I want to apologise but I know that you don’t like apologies. I am sorry, though. I shouldn’t have allowed others, allowed him to dictate my actions. And I did. But I’m here now and I’d like … I’d like … Oh, Bruce, I just needed to see you, to see that you were alright, to see what kind of life you’ve made for yourself, to see …”
Bruce held up a hand and took a step closer to cut off her ramblings.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to see you again,” Bruce said. “It’s just, after all this time, I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.”
“I can get that,” Betty smiled. “I’m feeling pretty much the same.”
“Really? I never would have guessed. Would you like to sit down?”
She nodded and moved closer and for a fraction of a second, Bruce was sure that she was going to hug him. Or perhaps it was that he was going to hug her. In the end, it didn’t matter for the moment passed and the two moved to sit on one of the couches, their bodies turned to face each other.
“Before anything else, I’ve got to know. The General, your father, does he know that you’re here?” Bruce asked.
Betty shook her head, her hair swishing hard from side to side.
“No. He’d have a heart attack if he did; you know what he’s like,” she replied. “No. I left everything behind when I decided to come. You know that he’s Secretary of State now? Well, that hasn’t stopped him from ensuring that his map for my life has progressed pretty much exactly how he wanted. The only way for me to come was to leave it all behind.”
“All? You left your whole life behind to come see me?” Bruce asked. He removed his glasses, pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. “If it was so important to see me, to do that, why now? Why’d it take so long?”
“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but after seeing what happened in South Africa, I finally made the decision. That was the worst that I’ve ever seen the Hulk. He was … you were beyond rage. It was primal, the most bestial that I’ve ever seen. I know you, Bruce, even after all this time, I know you. I knew that you’d be beating yourself up about what happened about what could have happened. I decided right then to come, to see you to remind you that you’re not a monster.”
“You’re right, I did beat myself up about it, still do in fact,” Bruce admitted. “But there were circumstances, things that you don’t know or understand that made the Hulk lose control like that. And it’s not like I’m alone, I have people around me these days who support me.”
“The Avengers. See, I was right, regardless of your form, you are a hero,” Betty smiled and Bruce couldn’t help but laugh.
“Yeah, I guess I am. At least the Hulk and I, we’re finally doing more good than harm, the books are finally beginning to tilt back the other way,” Bruce said.
“I know. I’ve been keeping a watch for anything about the Hulk,” Betty admitted. “You should see the scrapbook that I’ve got. Well, had; I had to leave it behind as well. But it’s got every newspaper articles, magazine clippings, every photo that I could find in it.”
“That’s … sweet,” Bruce said in lieu of something better to say. “What is it that you’re hoping for here, Betty?”
She looked down at her hands for a moment before looking back up, her eyes immediately searching out his own, as though willing him to see that she wasn’t lying, that everything that she was saying was the total truth.
“I’m not sure. A chance to reconnect, maybe? I’d like to get to know you again. I know that things won’t be like they were – too much water under the bridge for that. But I’ve missed you. You were my best friend, hell, we were more than just friends once.”
“You’ve never … found someone, married?” Bruce asked tentatively.
“No. Oh, I’ve dated a couple of times, don’t get me wrong,” she replied, “and there was more than one that the General set me up with, encouraged me in fact, to marry, if truth be told. But none of them were right for me. No connection, you know?”
“What about your dad? I doubt that he’s given up on me, on experimenting on me to find out how I tick? To turn me into some kind of weapon,” Bruce commented.
“Oh, don’t worry about him,” Betty said, waving the suggestion away. “He called off the army ages ago, something about a new project with some … Thing? I don’t know, it was all highly classified and I only caught enough snippets to know that you’re safe from him.”
“That’s good to know,” Bruce replied, feeling a weight lift from his shoulders that he didn’t even know that he was carrying. “And, for what it’s worth, I’d like a chance to get to know you again as well. Perhaps you can tell me more about what you’ve been up to these last years over dinner?”
“I’d like that,” Betty beamed, her eyes shining.
ooo00ooo
Skye landed hard, stumbled, righted herself and instantly shot around, her hand up practically slamming into the startled face of Sam.
“Woah! We’re good, right?” Sam asked.
Skye let out a breath she didn’t know that she’d been holding.
“Yeah, we’re good. You just startled me, is all,” she replied.
“I didn’t think you S.H.I.E.L.D. types got startled, not like us common folk,” Sam replied. And then his demeanour changed as he seemed to get a better look at her. “Are you alright? You’re looking a little freaked out about something?”
“Getting kidnapped will do that to you,” Skye replied offhandedly. “You seen Harry?”
“Kidnapped?” a startled-sounding Sam replied. “Ah, yeah, I think he’s down at that bungalow of his.”
“Thanks,” Skye threw over her shoulder, ignoring the muttered complaints from Sam about wizards misnaming things, regardless of how they looked on the outside.
It took a few minutes to walk between the main building and where the Black Bungalow was situated on the island. The walk, though, did Skye good. The soothing feel of the breeze on her cheeks, the sound of the birds and the ocean not all that far away, the scent of the flowers and nature all calmed her nerves and by the time that Skye entered the ‘house’ she was feeling much calmer.
“Harry?” she called, dumping her shopping bag on the floor and not even flinching when it immediately disappeared.
One of the house elves, she determined. She knew that when next she checked, she’d find it in her room. Or more likely, the dress already hung in her wardrobe.
“In here,” she heard Harry call and followed the sound of his voice to his study.
“Hey,” she said as she entered the room.
“I thought you were out shopping today?” Harry asked, even as he pushed his chair back from his desk and turned it to just the right angle to allow her to sit in his lap.
“I was. Until I was kidnapped. Again!” she said.
She felt his body tense and his arms squeeze her just a little more tightly before he relaxed.
“Obviously you got yourself out of it. So, who were the unfortunate souls that decided kidnapping Quake was a smart move?” he asked.
“Would you believe my mother?” she asked, still wrapping her head around that fact herself.
“Actually, no,” Harry replied. “Want to try again?”
“No, I’m being serious here. It was my mother or at least on my mother’s orders,” she reiterated. “Some guy with no eyes. A teleporter. His ability caught me by surprise and took me to her.”
“Obviously you used your portkey to get back home,” Harry stated. “How’d you know that she was your mother?”
“She told me. Actually, she told me of the night that I was born. Even told me when my birthday was.” At Harry’s inquisitive eyebrow, she elaborated. “July second. I thought that Cal had told me that she’d died. Obviously, she didn’t, although judging by the scars that lined her face, it must have been a near thing.”
“Where were you taken?” Harry asked.
Skye shrugged. “Dunno. Some place called Afterlife. Apparently, that’s not how they normally do things with new Inhumans – that’s what they call us Kree experiment descendants – but Gordan, the teleporter, has been having a bit of difficulty finding me, so decided snatching me was the smart thing to do.”
“The wards,” Harry guessed.
“Yeah. Well, I stuck around just long enough to get that much info and then portkeyed out of there,” she finished.
“Your mother’s alive, that’s a pretty big thing,” Harry pointed out. “How do you feel about that? I’m guessing that you have so many questions.”
“I’m still processing,” she replied. “But yeah, the questions are starting to come. Not that it makes much difference anyway, unless I want them to kidnap me again – I’ve got no idea where this ‘Afterlife’ is anyway.”
“That’s not necessarily true,” Harry replied before capturing her left wrist and tapping his finger on the watch that Tony had given her when she became a fully-fledged Avenger. “This thing does more than just tell the time you know.”
“It’s also a communicator,” Skye nodded. “And I’m guessing it has a built in GPS that tracks my movements? Now, that’s not creepy in the slightest.”
Harry gave a lop-sided smile at her sarcasm.
“But dead useful if anything goes wrong,” he said. “So, if you want to know where you were taken, where your mother is, all we have to do is plug it in to a computer and find out.”
For a second, Skye was undecided and then a cacophony of questions presented itself. It’d be nice to have the option of being able to ask them, at the very least.
“Hook me up,” she said, holding out arm.
ooo00ooo
Spider-Man shot out a web, released his other hand and swung on the new line. Instead of repeating the process as he had been for the past four city blocks, this time he released at the top of his arc and flung out his arms, his legs dead straight behind him. Small arcs of silk, designed like a web, appeared under his armpits, from elbow down to his hips, allowing him to glide the short distance across to the nearby rooftop.
As he passed over the crenulation, he tucked his arms and legs in, spinning, falling and landing in a crouch. Standing up, Spider-Man held out one arm again, examining the gliding material once more.
“That’s new,” Daredevil announced.
“I know, right?” Spider-Man said. “Pure awesomeness! It’s part of the new suit upgrade that Mister Stark designed for me. I even had a few design input ideas. And the eyes, they’re so cool, the way they move and everything. Telescopic lenses, infrared, enhanced light … uh, sorry, Matt, I didn’t mean any offence.”
“None taken, kid,” Daredevil laughed.
“The only thing I’m not sure about are all the different types of web shots I can do now,” Spider-man continued. “Don’t get me wrong, the versatility is great but three hundred different combinations? Seems a little overkill to me. Oh, and the talking AI, that I haven’t decided on. Karen’s nice and all, especially when I’m out by myself, but still, it can get a little unnerving having her in my ear all the time.”
“Karen?” Daredevil asked.
“Yeah, I named my AI, Karen. Well, I had to call her something. Miss Page won’t mind, will she? I didn’t think about it when I named Karen and it’d be a bit weird to rename her now, if you know what I mean?”
“I’m sure that Karen won’t have a problem,” Daredevil assured him. “She’ll probably even get a kick out it.”
The way that Daredevil suddenly turned his head had Spider-Man on alert.
“Gun fire. Four blocks south,” Daredevil stated.
“That’s Harlem,” Spider-Man said. “Trouble’s been building up there for the past couple of months. Gangs all trying to take over, outdo each other. You’d think that they’d get a clue.”
“You going to stand there talking all night or are we going to do something about it?” Daredevil asked and promptly jumped over the edge of the building just to reappear at a run on the next building’s roof.
“Well, that was rude,” Spider-Man said.
Flinging out a line, he leapt off the building after his partner.
When next he landed on a roof, he could tell that he was practically right over the top of the action. His ear easily picked up four, possibly five different automatic rifles, as well as a handful of handguns. All of them were firing.
“Gang war,” Spider-Man guessed before crawling along the roof and sticking his head out to assess the situation before swinging in (and also to give his partner time to catch up).
What he saw below defied even his imagination.
He was close on the numbers – twelve or thirteen guys with guns. And they were definitely all part of the same gang. Who they were fighting, though, who they were all up against, wasn’t another gang. No. It. Was. One. Single. Guy. One. One guy and they were all shooting at him and if their gun ran out of bullets, they simply reloaded and kept on shooting.
“That is pure crazy,” Spider-Man said, his eyes wide.
This guy wasn’t even attempting to dodge the bullets the way he or Daredevil or some of the others could. No, he simply stood there, letting the bullets hit him and bounce off. The guy was big, one of the largest men that Spider-Man had seen and it was all muscle. He was obviously a powerful black man and looked even more intimidating with his hoodie all shot up.
Whoever he was and regardless of whether he actually needed any help at all, Spider-Man simply couldn’t let some guy just be shot at like that.
Shooting out a web, he leapt from the building, swinging hard and fast.
“Give me a rapid shot, Karen,” Spider-Man said.
As he approached the bottom of his arc, he fired four rapid bursts. Each one hit their target, gumming up the rifles, sticking hands together, wrapping around feet and then sticking the men to the ground. Letting go of his web, Spider-Man landed at a run and switched types of webshots. This time, a ball of netting bagged one of the men, his gun landing on the ground. A second shot of webbing – a line this time – had that netting picked up and strung up from a nearby lamp post, the man now dangling upside down.
The bullet proof guy seemed to decide that that was the correct time to fight back. Spider-Man’s eyes bugged out as the guy plucked a traffic sign out of the ground as though it was a blade of grass and swung it at one the men, sending him flying across the street. And when one of the others tried to sneak up and shoot him in the back, the hoodie guy just turned around and knotted the street sign around the guy!
Two of the gang then turned their guns on Spider-Man and he was forced to flip and turn and twist and dive out of the way. When one suddenly stopped firing, Spider-Man fired his webs (balls, this time) knocking the second man backwards until he tripped over and the balls exploded all over him, pinning him to the ground.
“Thanks, but I had him,” Spider-Man called to Daredevil who stood over the unconscious man that had been firing a second before.
Within a couple of minutes, the street was quiet except for the occasional gang member that was still conscious.
Spider-Man looked around at the carnage and dusted his hands off. And then he noticed bullet-proof guy. He was standing in front of the guy who Spider-Man had left dangling from a net upside down.
“Hey, not cool, dude!” Spider-Man shouted when the guy hit the one who was trussed up sending him swinging way backwards until he was all but horizontal.
Seeing a fist lined up ready to strike again as the man descended, Spider-Man shot out a web, connected to the net and pulled the man out of the way, just in time.
“I’d answer him if I was you,” Daredevil remarked. “Spider-Man over there’s probably the only one here who’ll care if your bones remain in one piece or not.”
“Cotton Mouth!” the man near-yelled.
Apparently, that was an answer for the black guy simply grinned and tapped the dangling man on the head with his finger and knocking him out.
“Dude, you are strong! And big,” Spider-Man said, looking up at him.
“Size doesn’t always matter, but it sure can help. Thanks for the assist. Name’s Cage. Luke Cage.”
“I’m assuming that you know who we are?” Daredevil asked and received an answering nod.
“How’d you get bulletproof? ’Cause that’s really wicked! Is it just bulletproof or are you basically indestructible? I’m guessing you’re indestructible if bullets can’t break your skin,” Spider-Man said in awe as he poked the man’s arm through a tear in his hoodie.
“You’re a curious one, aren’t you?” Luke Cage grinned. “And believe me, kid, what they did to me to make me like this, I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.”
“I’m guessing it hurt?” Daredevil half-asked, half stated.
“Well, it sure didn’t tickle,” Cage replied. “What are you two doing in Harlem?”
“Heard the gunfire,” Daredevil replied. “Harlem’s been getting a bit of a gang problem. We’re trying to put an end to it.”
“Sounds like my kind of fight,” Cage replied. “If you’re in the neighbourhood and need a hand, just ask for me. Everyone around here knows who I am.”
“We’ll remember that,” Daredevil replied.
“Hey, Karen, can you let the cops know that there’s a bunch of bad guys here? Better tell them to bring a couple of ambulances, too,” Spider-Man said, eyeing both Luke and the unconscious guy still swaying from the light pole.
ooo00ooo
Hesitantly, Melati shuffled into the hospital room, her head twisting from side to side as she searched out any potential danger. Not that there would be any; she knew that. Still, more than a year of being held captive and experimented on had given her an intense dislike of hospitals.
The doctor … Healer, was the only one present and she was sitting at a desk, writing something with a quill of all things. As quiet as she was, she must have made some sort of sound for Healer Greengrass looked up.
“Ah, you’re here, shall we get started then?” she asked, pushing her chair back and standing.
Melati inched closer before squaring her shoulders and moving across to the bed in the centre of the room. Hopping up, she sat there and waited. As she’d done many times before, Healer Greengrass simply moved within arm’s length and took out her wand, to begin waving it over her.
A wand, a piece of wood, wasn’t nearly as intimidating as some of the things that she’d seen in a hospital of late. Really, when Melati thought about it, what did she have to fear anyway? She was now part lizard with the proportional strength to go with it. Not to mention the claws that she could extend and the power in her jaw.
Within a minute, Healer Greengrass had lowered her wand with a smile.
“As far as I can tell, you’re perfectly healthy,” she said. “There’s no sign of malnutrition and your bone and muscle density all looks good, well, from what I can determine, considering I’m not exactly sure of what your physiology is now supposed to be. Regardless, I’m content with your progress and can use your current health as your new baseline.”
“So, I don’t have to come see you anymore?” Melati asked.
“Not unless you are feeling sick or get injured,” Healer Greengrass replied. “I know that you’re eager to get out of here, so why don’t you head across to the main building, there’s a few people there waiting for you.”
Melati narrowed her eyes at her ‘request’. Not that she believed she had anything to worry about. Still, she didn’t like being ordered around.
Regardless, she quickly hopped off the bed, thanked the Healer and exited the building. Walking across the park-like area, she glanced up at the great glass windows. With the sun at this angle, it was hard to make out more than shadows of four people in the room, even with her enhanced sight.
Walking into the long, expansive lounge room, Melati found that she’d been correct in the number of people that she’d thought was here. Harry was expected, after all, he owned the island. Steve Rogers, was also expected, as was Bobbi. The last one, a woman in a pristine business suit with reddish-blonde hair, she’d never met before rounded out the group.
“Allow me to make introductions,” Steve said. “Melati, meet Pepper Potts.”
Melati blinked. She’d heard of the woman. Girlfriend of Tony Stark. CEO of Stark Industries.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Pepper said and Melati was pleased to note that she didn’t even flinch when shaking her hand.
“You, too,” Melati replied.
“I’m sure that you’re wondering why we’re all here,” Steve said, obviously taking charge of the meeting.
At Melati’s nod, he continued.
“Now that you’ve been given the ‘all clear’ from Doctor Greengrass, we thought that you might like to talk about your future.”
“Firstly, you are more than welcome to stay here on the island for as long as you like,” Harry said, taking over. “You’ve already picked a room here; it’s yours as long as you want it. In this case, you’ll find rings, necklaces and ankle bracelets. Please choose one to keep. They are all permanent portkeys – magical means of transporting you from one place to another, in this instance, from here to Avengers Tower in New York. Underneath the one you choose will be a piece of card with a pair of words or phrases on it. That’s the passwords to activate the portkey.”
Melati looked into the case that he opened for her, her eyes roving over the differing styles of gold and silver jewellery. One of the ankle bracelets caught her attention and she fingered it.
“Don’t worry, it won’t break,” Harry told her. “It’s been enchanted so that not even the Hulk could break those links.”
With that assurance, she smiled and picked it and the card up.
“Thank you.”
“As you can see, we don’t want you to feel as though you’re confined to the island, you can move about as much as you like,” Steve said. “Unfortunately, people being people, we know how much this island can mean as a place to retreat to, so it and we are your home for as long as you like.”
“I’ve been told that you’re interested in continuing your education to become a biochemist?” Pepper asked.
“Yes,” Melati replied eagerly. “I’d just finished my first year at Empire State University when I was kidnapped. I know that I’ve been gone for a year and now look like this, but I’d still like to complete the course, if it’s possible.”
“It’s certainly more than possible,” Pepper assured her. “Stark Industries has some pull with Empire State after all of the donations we’ve made over the years. I’ve used that to get you reinstated to your course with your academic marks from your first year restored. Obviously, you’ve still got another three years to go to complete the course but you can begin again whenever you like. You also have the choice of attending in person or completing much of the course on-line – including through video conferencing – or a combination of both.”
“You’ve done so much, I don’t know how I can repay you,” Melati said.
“That’s easy,” Pepper smiled. “Get the best results that you can, graduate and do some good in the world.”
“And if you would like,” Bobbi added, “you can use that knowledge in any research for the Avengers as well. We’re always looking for more scientists of different specialities – the world tends to throw all manner of weird and wonderful at us.”
“Sounds like a deal for allowing me to stay here,” Melati smiled.
“And if you want, I can continue to work with you, to teach you how to use your new physique to its fullest potential, including how to fight. You can even learn how to pilot a quinjet, if you like,” Bobbi added.
Melait’s eyes narrowed. “That sounds suspiciously like the basics of your Avengers Academy course.”
“Does it?” Bobbi asked and her innocent act did nothing to fool Melati.
“I’ll think about it, but I’m not making any promises,” she said. “It seems that I’ve got some studying to do if I’m going to be ready for September – I’ve got to refresh my memory of a year’s worth of work.”
“Do think about it, though,” Steve insisted. “You could be a valuable asset. Talk to Jennifer. She didn’t want to fight either, but she has the knowledge ‘just in case’ even though she ‘serves’ in other ways.”
“I will,” Melati promised.
ooo00ooo
The tesseract. Vessel of the Space Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones. And here it lay before Thor, safe in Odin’s Vault, deep under the palace on Asgard.
Thor stood, deep in thought, one arm crossed over his chest, supporting his other hand as he stroked his chin.
The Space Stone had been hidden on Midgard eons in the past before it was discovered a mere seventy years ago. Then, Steve had thwarted the plans to use it, allowing it to become lost once again only for S.H.I.E.L.D. to fish it out of the bottom of the ocean and to eventually attempt to understand it and use it.
It had brought Loki to Midgard, carrying a sceptre containing the Mind Stone – although that was unknown at the time – and an army of Chitauri at his back. The sceptre was lost on Midgard in enemy hands before it was quite recently recovered and the gem that it housed broken to release the Mind Stone. Now, it resided with the Vision and Thor could think of no safer hands.
The third of the Infinity Stones that Thor himself had seen was the Aether, or more accurately, the Reality Stone. Able to recreate and reshape reality around its user, to bend what was into what was dreamed to be. The Dark Elves of Svartalfheim had sought to use it to remake the universe in their image. It, too, had been hidden away for millennia until a woman from Midgard, Jane, in fact, had discovered it and brought it back to Midgard housed within her. Eventually it had been extracted, encased and given to The Collector to protect it in the far depths of space on Knowhere.
That made three out of the four Stones that had appeared in recent years to have made their way to Midgard. That Thor knew of.
That fourth, though, the Power Stone, Thor had seen in his dreams, in his vision with the Norn. It, too, had surfaced not that long ago. He had seen a planet in that vision, one that stirred memories. Xandar, the capital of the Nova Empire. It was there, he was sure of it. But he needed to make sure. Only then could Thor begin his quest to find the missing two and more importantly, the one who was manipulating people, planets and events to suit his own purposes. These Stones were far too powerful to allow any one individual to use them, let alone to gather them together.
Decision made, Thor strode from the Vault, his destination, Heimdell and the Rainbow Bridge and after that … Xandar.