Day 17.
While Tony stayed in the lab with his emotional support cube, everybody else had thrown a party for their success. The only downside of yesterday was kids being kids, and it was something Tony couldn't say no to. Quentin's children and a lot of other people who helped never got to actually see what the Prison Realm looked like. So it was only fair for him to set up a small viewing event. He knew nothing would happen to it, but he still ended up placing the cube in a glass case as everybody stared at it.
It was a confusing time for them all.
It was the next day now, and you'd think with having the prison realm that Tony would be able to get a good night sleep. Wrong. The good news was that he had the Prison Realm, he *had* Quentin with him.... but the bad news, however, was he had no idea how to unseal the man. With all the excitement, he hadn't even asked Friday yet, that's how out of it he was.
"Hey Fri, any information on how to free Quentin?"
"Yes, but I don't think you're going to like it."
"Oh come on, how bad could unsealing him be? If anything, getting the damn thing was much harder. Come on, lay it on me."
"It's voice activated,"
"Perfect, that's not too hard," Tony interrupted, "What do I have to say?"
"The person who seals a prisoner is the only one who can unseal them."
Tony's heart dropped.
"... You don't mean- ... Are you telling me that Fury is the only one who can open this?"
"I did warn you that you wouldn't like it. In order to unseal a victim, the holder has to say the following sentence; "Gate open". I'm afraid that if anybody else says it, that nothing will happen."
"No, there has to be another way. I'm so close. Fury is NOT going to get in my way again!"
Tony turned his attention to the realm. The green glow surrounding it reminding him constantly of the suffering that the victim was facing. Surely there was a mistake. Perhaps a mistranslation or an old rule that was later fixed. But when Tony had said the words... nothing happened.
"Fuck- no... nono, this can't- It won't- Friday, why the fuck isn't it working?!"
"Mr. Stark..." She said sadly.
"No! NO! I REFUSE! THERE HAS TO BE ANOTHER WAY! I CAN'T- ...I can't go to Fury- I.. even if I did- he would never do it... He'd rather die." The man started to cry, going through the open tabs of research that he had. "Friday, please tell me there's another way."
Silence.
The cries turned to sobs, and those turned into a hyperventilating meltdown. Things were shoved off tables in Tony's breakdown, including the cube itself, which had landed on the floor, unscratched. This couldn't be how this would end... it can't be... he had worked so hard these past few weeks... he was so close to seeing Quentin's ocean blue eyes and smelling his scent... please.
A weak reach for the realm as the genius curled into a ball on the lab floor. Tears staining the sides of the cube as the glow of green was almost mocking him. Telling him what was in there, but that he couldn't get to it. Then the thoughts came back. What if all this time Quentin had been dead? What if he couldn't take such torture that he just killed himself. What if it all was for nothing?
"Quentin," He cried out, the tears making his brown eyes glimmer as if sunlight was raining down onto them, "I don't know if you can hear me or anything but... I'm so sorry. I failed, Q-Tip. I failed you... I failed everyone. That's all I am. A great big failure."
Tony had expected to see a change in the light of green, a message in Morse code even... but nothing happened. That's when he recalled what Friday had said on the very first day. Unlike being turned into a stuffed toy, Quentin couldn't communicate. He had no way of even knowing what was going on outside his tiny prison. It was just like always but more intense... Tony was Quentin's only ticket to ever get out. And though he was at one of his lowest points... that shot some motivation through him.
It took a bit of time for the Avenger to clean himself up, but after reality had hit him like a speeding bullet, he knew he couldn't give up. All odds were against him. Hell, it even seemed impossible. But he was Tony Stark. One of or if not Earth's Mightiest Hero. He had come this close, he won't let it go to waste.
Blueprints of the Prison Realm surrounded the inventor. Every angle possible was shown to him as he went through each tool that he had. Maybe he could pry it open with something. Separate it in two to unleash the magical doors to allow Quentin to get out. Maybe he could melt it with a blow torch. Something surely had to work... right?
Hours of desperate ideas must have passed, as Tony's hands were starting to turn red from how hard he had been gripping each tool. Burn marks even managed to make their way onto his skin when he failed to realize how close to the flame he was. All that effort. All that banging, melting, throwing, crying... nothing worked in the end. The Prison Realm remained on the hard tile floor.
Unharmed.
Tony stared at it in defeat. His panting, the only visible sound in the room as his hands began to ache from the pain he had caused onto them. No... please. Those brown eyes of him began to fill with tears again as frustration creeped in, taking control and becoming his one emotion for right now. He had tried everything... He tried throwing it against the walls, the floor. He tried breaking it open or melting it. He had tried the freeing sentence over, and over, but nothing worked. He had even tried slamming the door into it against the frame to see if he could pop it open like a soda can.
The heartbroken hero was practically on his knees at the front of the cube. Quiet tears falling from his face and splashing onto the floor below. He couldn't do it... he had tried so hard. Had so much faith that he could... that there was another way! But there wasn't... All that was left of Quentin Beck was that stupid fucking box.
"I'm so sorry." Tony's voice cracked. Another meltdown taking control as he banged his fists so hard into the floor. Running his fingers through his hair while pulling strands out in the process and mourning loudly. The haze of green continuing to mock him as it remained standing. The only thing different from when Tony had it was the dried tear stains that he had left.
"What am I supposed to do without you, Quen?" Stark sniffled. "I can't have a cube as a husband... the kid's can't have a box as a father..."
The silence was loud before desperate, cramped fingers gripped the prison realm and shook it.
"Dammit Quentin- DO SOMETHING!!" He screamed. He remained in delusion. Expecting the Prison Realm to magically unseal and that he'd get to see the man's olive green sweater again.
Nothing.
This was the loudest silence that there was.
Tony Stark had given up. His screams and sobs so loud that they may have been the first sound to break Quentin's soundproof technology. He had failed his one and only. He tried so hard... but there was nothing he could do. There was no way to free Mysterio from his prison without SHIELD... and Fury wouldn't do it.
Quentin Beck was sealed forever.