Aim for the Stars
Alice arrived back at Tony’s mansion via taxicab just as he finished setting up the model in his workshop. “Pretty cool,” Alice acknowledged. “When do we get to play Godzilla?”
“…We’re not playing Godzilla,” Tony chided her. He leaned over and blew a spot of dust from the model.
“…Didn’t you have this thing in your convertible, Tony? How the hell did the dust survive the wind whipping through it as you sped down the highway?” Alice asked.
“Dunno,” Tony shrugged. “JARVIS, could you kindly Vac-u-form a digital wire frame? I need a manipulatable projection.”
“Then is it Godzilla time?” Alice asked, laying on the puppy dog eyes.
“Look, Pretty in Pink, when you’re a multimillionaire hosting your own technology expo, you can hire someone to make a scale model of it and stomp that to pieces, alright?” Tony snapped. As he spoke, a subtle blue scanner light passed over the model.
“1974 Stark Expo model scan complete, sir,” JARVIS announced.
Tony proceeded to ‘lift’ the digitized model up and away from the physical one, for easy manipulation. “How many buildings are there?” he asked.
“Am I to include the Belgian waffle stands?” JARVIS inquired.
“YES!” Alice shouted.
Tony shot a glare at Alice. “That was rhetorical, just show me.” Tony sent the model spinning and walked away, fidgeting with excitement.
“You know, Tony, you’re probably autistic too,” Alice pointed out. “You’ve got that stimming thing going on.”
Tony ignored her and approached the model once more, which was now vertically oriented. “What does that look like to you, JARVIS? …Not unlike an atom. In which case the nucleus would be —”
“There!” Alice said, pointing to the center, grinning proudly.
“…Yes, good job, gold star,” Tony said, condescendingly. “Highlight the Unisphere.” The globe at the middle obtained a subtle golden glow as Tony expanded it with a gesture of his hands. “Lose the footpaths. Get rid of them.” The footpaths vanished from the model.
“What is it you’re trying to achieve, sir?” JARVIS asked.
“I’m discovering… uh, correction, I’m re-discovering a new element, I believe.” Tony cradled his chin in one hand, deep in thought.
“Is it one of those U ones towards the end of the table? Uni… unibrow? Unabomber?” Alice asked, brows furrowed in thought.
“Probably a bit farther out than those,” Tony muttered. “Lose the landscaping, the shrubbery, the trees. Parking lots, exits, entrances.” More and more of the model was pared away.
“Don’t forget the Belgian waffle stands!” Alice helpfully pointed out.
“Structure the protons and the neutrons using the pavillions as a framework,” Tony ordered. Within moments, the model coalesced into that of an atom, packed with a crapload of protons. Tony spread his arms wide and the atom expanded, encompassing both Tony and Alice, the latter of which was, for once, too impressed to speak. “Dead for almost twenty years, and still taking me to school,” Tony remarked, smirking. He slapped his hands together, collapsing the atom into the palms of his hands.
“The proposed element should serve as a viable replacement for palladium,” JARVIS said.
“Thanks, dad,” Tony said. Alice leaned in and tried to bite the holographic atom, but Tony yanked it away at the last minute. “Have you had your rabies shot?” he asked, dismayed by her behavior. Alice shrugged, which kind of alarmed Tony.
“Unfortunately, it is impossible to synthesize,” JARVIS remarked.
“Uh-huh,” Tony said.
“Here we go,” Alice murmured. “The eleventh-hour ass-saving!”
“Get ready for a major remodel, fellas!” he shouted out to Alice and the robots. “We’re back in hardware mode!”
***
Alice had a lot of fun smashing big freakin’ holes in Tony’s house. Tony could toss a hammer with the best of them, but Alice was just on a whole other level with her enhanced strength, leaving him to mostly work on the electrical shit.
Once all the holes were knocked through his walls and floors, though, there wasn’t all that much for Alice to do. She went up to the living room, where Coulson was watching Supernanny, and gave him the list of parts Tony needed for his particle thingamajig; Coulson made a call and within the hour a big cargo helicopter had flown by and dropped off everything they needed, in big crates labeled ‘Project Pegasus’.
“What, SHIELD working on winged horses now?” Alice asked.
“It seemed like the next best move after Project Unicorn failed to produce results,” Coulson shrugged, straight-faced. Alice was pretty sure Coulson was fucking with her, but not 100% sure.
Alice wanted to help setting up all the big metal tubes and shit, but Tony shooed her away, needing complete control of the engineering of the particle thingy or else it might very well blow up in their faces. So, while Tony was setting that up, Alice walked off to the far side of the workshop. “JARVIS… can you do a search for a Rebecca Chambers?” she asked, anxiety wringing her guts out.
A few moments passed. “One match found. Rebecca Chambers, twenty years old, with a doctorate in biochemistry and a master’s in virology.” JARVIS projected a photo of her and Alice’s breath hitched in her throat: it was her. “I take it this is the woman you remembered?”
Alice nodded. “Is there… is there contact information?”
“Yes, there is,” JARVIS said. “…I should caution you, Miss Abernathy. If you really are from an alternate universe, the chances that she knows who you are in this universe are fairly low, especially if you only met after the global catastrophe you’ve spoken of.”
Alice stiffly nodded. “I know, JARVIS, but there has to be some reason I have big holes in my memory. Maybe… maybe she might have some answers about that. Make the call.”
“Very well, ma’am.” JARVIS’ voice was replaced by the sound of an outgoing call.
A few moments passed. “Hello, Dr. Chambers speaking,” said a voice Alice hardly recognized, not weighed down with the bitterness and cynicism of someone forced to raise her son alone after killing his father in a nightmarish apocalyptic world.
“H-hello,” Alice said, choking down her tears. “This is Rebecca Chambers, yes?”
“Yes, this is she,” Rebecca confirmed. “What’s this about?”
“I… I recently suffered some significant memory loss,” Alice stated. “And I was wondering if you might know anything about me? My name is Alice Abernathy.”
“…Oh! That new superhero, Surge Protector?” Rebecca asked. “I mean… I don’t know anything personally about you, just what I saw on the news.”
“You don’t know anything about, uh… Super Soldier programs?” Alice asked. “Ones that utilized viral enhancements?”
“No, nothing like that, apart from the historical stuff from World War II,” Rebecca said. “Sorry.”
“…Are you sure?” Alice asked. “You aren’t familiar with any viral agents that can… bring dead tissue back to life?”
“…I don’t think I’m permitted to talk about this anymore, per the terms of my employment contract,” Rebecca said evenly.
“…Rebecca, are you making fucking zombies?!” Alice asked, aghast.
“What? No!” Rebecca huffed. “Is this… is this a prank call?”
“No, it’s not,” Alice said. “I’m sorry, like I said I have extensive memory loss and there’s lots of weird gaps in my memory that leave a lot of stuff without context.” She forced a chuckle. “Maybe I was just a horror movie addict, huh?”
Rebecca chuckled. “Maybe.”
“Do you have… a boyfriend? Husband? A kid?” Alice asked.
“No, nothing like that,” Rebecca said. “I guess you could say I’m married to my work!”
“And you went straight from school to work? Nothing in between?” Alice asked.
“Well, after I got my double masters at 18, I did take about an eight month break. My roomie was a bit of a stoner and wouldn’t shut up about her trip to the Netherlands and…” Rebecca let out a nervous chuckle. “I guess I had such a good time I don’t really remember much at all about it. But once I got back I powered through my doctorate, then got headhunted by Advanced Idea Mechanics.”
“Cool,” Alice said. “Alright, Dr. Chambers, I’m sorry if I bothered you or wasted your time or —”
“Oh, not at all!” Rebecca assured her. “I hope I was able to help, even by means of eliminating a false lead!”
“Well, thank you for saying that,” Alice said. “If you by any chance hear something about me, or a viral-based Super Soldier program, or, ha ha, zombies, please let me know, alright?” She gave Rebecca her number.
“Alright, Miss Abernathy!” Rebecca said. “I hope you can find the answers you’re looking for! Goodbye!” The call ended.
Alice, emotionally drained, lay flat on the ground, probing the holes in her memory for any new shred of info, any possible lead she could pursue.
She was rewarded with nothing.
***
Alice had once more composed herself when Coulson entered Tony’s workshop. “I heard you broke the perimeter,” he accused.
“Uh, yeah, that was, like, three years ago,” Tony said. “Where you been?”
“I was doing some stuff,” Coulson said vaguely.
“Taking a big dump?” Alice asked. Coulson and Tony both wrinkled their noses in disgust.
“Yeah, well, me too, and it worked,” Tony said. “Not taking a dump,” he shot at Alice before she had a chance to wisecrack. “I’m playing for the home team, Coulson, you and all your Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers. Now, you gonna let me work, or break my balls?”
Coulson had ignored half of what Tony was saying, his eyes locked onto some weird-looking take on Captain America’s shield. (Alice wasn’t sure if it had come from Howard Stark’s crate, one of the Project Pegasus ones, or if Tony had just had it laying around). “What’s this doing here?” he said, holding back his glee.
“That’s it,” Tony said, eying it in Coulson’s hands. “Bring that to me.”
“You know what this is?” Coulson said, almost ready to let his geek flag fly.
“It’s exactly what I need to make this work,” Tony said, taking the shield from Coulson. “Lift the coil,” he instructed. “Go, go, put your knees into it.” Coulson lifted up the doohickey. “There you go. And…” Tony wedged the shield beneath the doohickey. “Drop it, drop it!” Coulson stepped back and Tony put a level on the thingy. “Perfectly level,” he said, satisfied. “I’m busy, what do you want?” he finally asked Coulson.
“Nothing. Goodbye. I’ve been reassigned.” Coulson’s words were stiff.
“No!” Alice shouted. “What’ll I do without you?!” She rushed forward and locked Coulson into a tight hug.
“Alice, I handled most of your needs over the phone,” Coulson pointed out. “I can still do that. But right now, Director Fury wants me in New Mexico.”
“Fantastic, Land of Enchantment,” Tony said, like it was the state motto or something.
“So I’m told,” Coulson said.
“Oh, that’s right, he mentioned something about that before!” Alice said. “What’s in New Mexico?”
“Secret stuff,” Tony guessed.
“Something like that,” Coulson acknowledged.
“Aw, come on, Phil, give us a clue! One little measly hint!” Alice begged.
Coulson frowned, then sighed. “…One word, okay? Don’t tell the boss.” Alice nodded eagerly. “…Hammer.”
A large grin spread on Alice’s face. “Hammer? HAMMER?” She proceeded to start jumping up and down. “IT’S THOR TIME, MOTHERFUCKERS!”
“…Thor?” Coulson asked, confused. “The Norse god?”
“Yeah, he’s got a magic fucking hammer or something — the hammer you’re going to see fell from space, right?” Coulson looked like he was gonna be sick. “Oh man, Thor is coming, this is gonna be so fucking cool!”
Tony gave Alice a skeptical look. “So, is this a ‘my universe is a comic book’ thing, or did the Vikings hit the nail on the head, theologically speaking, in your universe?”
“The first one,” Alice said. “And I don’t think he’s a god god, I think it’s just a sufficiently advanced alien culture thing.” She turned to Coulson. “Phil, you totes gotta keep me in the loop if Thor shows up. Or his civilian identity, uh…” She snapped her fingers a few times, jogging her memory. “Donald Blake! I think that’s his name.”
Coulson gave Alice an inscrutable look. “…I’ll keep that all in mind,” he said. He turned to Tony and shook his hand. “Good luck.”
“Bye,” Tony said. “Thanks.”
“We need you,” Coulson said.
“Yeah, more than you know,” Tony agreed.
“Not that much,” Coulson countered.
“Goddamn, Coulson, you can be a vicious little badger when you wanna be,” Alice remarked.
Coulson turned to her and then his face lit up. “Oh, I almost forgot!” He reached into his jacket and removed a folder. “You asked for Vanko’s autopsy report. Here it is.” Alice took it as Coulson walked out.
Tony walked over to Alice, eyebrow arched with curiosity. “When did you ask for that?” he asked.
“A few days ago,” Alice said, distracted as she examined the report. “Rhodey and I were gossiping about you, then I told him I wasn’t sure Vanko was dead.”
Tony crossed his arms. “Right, because I’m Robert Downey Jr., he’s played by Mickey Rourke and this is a movie.”
Alice glared at him through narrowed eyes. “Tony, say the seven words you can’t say on television.”
“…Alright,” Tony said. “Shit, piss, fuck, cunt, cocksucker, motherfucker, tits.”
“There you go,” Alice said. “If this were a movie, we just bought ourselves an R rating. Can you see Hollywood making an X-Men movie with wall to wall profanity?” She turned her attention back to the report, scanning page after page, until she reached the end of it, which had a picture of the deceased. “Fuck, I hate being right,” Alice muttered.
“Right about what?” Tony leaned in. “Okay, that’s Vanko on the autopsy slab. What are we supposed to be seeing?”
“Goddamnit, Tony, that’s not Mickey Rourke!” Alice pointed out. “Look closer! Even if you didn’t see Mickey Rourke in Vanko, you have to tell there are differences between this guy and the guy who tried killing you in Monaco!”
Tony took the picture and scrutinized it closely, comparing it with the face he’d burned into his memory at the Moroccan jail. “…Son of a bitch, you’re right.”
“I’ll call Miss Potts and let her know Vanko’s still a threat,” Alice said. “He had a boner for tearing down your family’s legacy, so if I had a million bucks I’d bet it all on an attack at the Stark Expo.”
“And she’s gonna be there,” Tony said, voice dangerously low.
“You get to work on the Unabomber element,” Alice told him. “That’s the best way to help Pepper right now. Miss Potts has Black Widow with her, she’s a verified badass. Nothing’s gonna get past her.”
Tony took a deep breath and nodded. “…Yeah, you’re right.” He picked up a big-ass wrench and started the particle thingy’s final preparations.
Alice pulled out her phone and dialed Pepper’s number. “This is Natalie Rushman, may I ask —” Natasha began.
“Natasha, I know this is a stupid question, but you brought your spy shit there, right? Your guns and tasers and all that?”
“…Yes,” Natasha confirmed, her voice sliding from the Natalie one to Natasha without hesitation. “What’s the situation?”
“Vanko is alive,” Alice told her. “I got the autopsy report from Morocco and there’s a whole different fucking guy in the picture. Tony confirmed it too. My hunch is that he’ll attack the Stark Expo. Keep Miss Potts safe, alright?”
“Affirmative,” Natasha said, disconnecting the call.