Rescue Mission
Tony raised his hand above the door, hesitating for a second.
"If this kid doesn't know anything-" he glanced uncertainly at May.
"Then he'll be a little scared, but fine," May rang the doorbell for him. A boy opened the door, glaring. It wasn't Mark but it seemed like a friend.
"What?" His eyes widened, "Oh my god, Mr. Stark! What brings you here? Is it for my project?"
"What project? Who are you?" May stepped between them.
"Hello, May," the boy glanced distastefully at the woman. Tony bristled. Then the boy's attention was back on him."My name is Flash. I sent in a project to your towers...?"
"I'll personally review your project if you let me see Mark," Tony lied.
"Uh, yeah, sure, come in!" Flash stammered. Mark was sitting on the couch, playing video games.
"Who the hell did you let into my house, Flash?" Mark asked angrily, not taking his eyes from the screen.
"Piss off, Mark," Flash snapped, "It's Tony Stark."
"I'd like a word with you, Mark," Tony said seriously, "May, if you'd take Flash to another room, for his safety of course."
Mark paused the game, looking at Mr. Stark for the first time and noticing May's presence as well.
"I didn't hit Peter first! I should press charges on him!" The words were confident, the tone was not. Tony looked pointedly at May at she muttered something unflattering, grabbed Flash's arm, and dragged him from the room. Tony turned his full glare on Mark. He wasn't used to being angry (usually he was lonely, or sad) but right now he could feel the fury boiling just underneath his skin. Mark whimpered.
"Please don't press charges," he pleaded. His begging did nothing to inspire mercy in Tony, but it did remind him why he was here.
"I'm here about something much more dangerous," Tony said, "Have you been in contact with anyone who wanted Peter's blood for any reason?"
Mark seemed ready to pee himself, "It was the tiniest amount of blood, just some from my knuckle when I... uh.. when I was using self defense. What harm could that do?"
"Peter has been kidnapped," Tony informed him, and Mark shivered.
"I didn't know, I swear!"
"Tell the people you want to meet them where you met them before," Tony ordered.
"Why?" Mark asked, his fear of the mob more than his fear of Tony.
"Or else way more serious charges can be pressed," Tony warned. "Not to mention the things I can do outside of the law."
Mark picked up his phone with trembling fingers.
"We meet these people at midnight, behind the falafel place on Mark's street," Tony said. "We take them, and force them to tell us where the mob's headquarters are. Then we go in, guns blazing, and rescue Peter."
"Okay," May said slowly, "But what about Pepper?"
"I'm trying not to think about it," Tony groaned, burying his head in his hands, "I'm gonna get her too."
"What if it comes to a choice between the two of them?" May asked, her voice suspicious.
"I don't know, May," Tony gazed at her sadly, "I don't know. God I love Peter, but I love Pepper too."
"Listen to me, Mr. Stark," May said in a steely voice, "If it comes between Peter and Pepper, you are saving my son."
"May-"
"No, don't 'May' me," May growled, "You will save Peter, or you will die trying."
Peter struggled, he really did, but it was no use. What was left of him was not in control of his body, though he could clearly see everything that was happening as if through his own eyes. It was disconcerting and unnatural and every time Peter tried to think deeply about it he nearly threw up. But it wasn't him throwing up, really, because this thing was in his blood, in his veins.
"Mr. Stark progress report?" Not-Pepper asked.
"Heading our way, though he hasn't received our traceable message," Not-Peter responded. Peter winced, because the words were coming from his mouth.
Not-Pepper let out a wicked laugh, "He is too smart for his own good. Swivilla will be proud."
Peter had heard the name Swivilla before. She was the head of this operation, the one who was trying to bring down Tony Stark. How or why she was doing this were unclear, but Not-Peter didn't care.
"I am glad Swivilla put us in her service," Not-Peter said stiffly, and with a start, Peter remembered that behind Not-Pepper's mask Pepper must be there. If he could only find out a way to communicate with her, they might be able to warn Tony. He tried to submerse himself in Not-Peter's personality, sinking into control. He experimentally tried raising his hand. His body complied for the first time in hours.
He tried to say, 'I hate Swivilla,' but that didn't work. He hadn't expected it - he needed small steps.
"Your subconscious fighting, too?" He asked as nonchalantly as possible. Not-Pepper answered with a curt nod. Peter felt a thrill ride at this gesture. The swiftness of the inclination had been such that Peter was sure that Pepper had been in control of that action. She knew now, then, that Peter was still there.
"The little bitch," Not-Pepper grinned, but the smirk was sarcastic enough that it might have been a snarky Pepper. There was hope yet.
"So what's Swivilla's grand plan?" Peter asked, not so subtly changing the topic.
"No idea," Not-Pepper answered. Peter felt a rush of adrenaline through him. Both he and Pepper were talking now, he was sure, but the fake versions of themselves believed they were in control.
"Why does she hate Mr. Stark so much?" Peter questioned.
Not-Pepper shut him down immediately, "We are not permitted to know that and will not inquire."
Pepper was gone. Peter sighed and retreated inside his own mind. This would take some time, but at least it was a start.
Tony waited patiently amongst the shadows, FRIDAY whispering the time in his ears every five minutes. Currently, it was 11:55 and Tony was nearly jumping out of his skin in anticipation. Finally he was doing something productive to help Peter Parker.
Tony glanced behind him at a scared but determined looking May. He wished that she had stayed in Stark Towers, but he knew that he could never beat her in an argument. His mind wandered to Pepper for a moment, the gorgeous woman with nerves of steel and a clever, witty temperament. He missed her - so, so much - and his stomach still roiled when he thought about leaving her behind. To stop himself from throwing up, he didn't think about it.
"Midnight," FRIDAY breathed into his ear, startling him. He peered into the shadows, activating the night vision in his suit. Two figures dressed entirely in black (though it looked green with the night vision) emerged from the darkness into the alleyway. Tony flattened his body against the wall, though the Iron Man suit was making it a bit difficult. He pressed May back as well, and she did not protest. The two were speaking in muted voices and Tony elevated their volume so that he could hear their conversation.
"This kid says he has leads on Tony Stark," the woman said.
"If he's lying, he'll have hell to pay," the man snarled. Tony recognized them from the video from Karen. He fought the urge to punch them.
"Doesn't matter," the woman corrected him, "Swivilla wants Stark to come after Peter, remember? That's all part of the plan. Then we'll ambush him, and Swiv will put him under the serum. Imagine having control of the most powerful man in the world!"
"Imagine being useless servants of the person in control of the most powerful man in the world," the man said glumly, "Because that's what we're going to be."
"No," she shook her head, "We have been faithful. She won't toss us out like garbage."
"Yeah, she will," he grumbled.
"I agree," Tony stepped into the light of a single light on the back wall of the falafel place. They looked at him, astounded and spluttering. They held up their guns, waving them in what was supposed to be a menacing manner.
"Please," said Tony with a smirk, though they couldn't see his face, "My suit could kill you twenty times faster than you can think. And you need me alive. So why don't we come to a deal, shall we?"
"N-no," the man stammered.
"You really want to die for someone who doesn't even care about what happens to you?" Tony raised an eyebrow - again, a gesture they were blind to.
"She - she does care," the woman insisted, but her voice held a tremor.
"No, she doesn't," Tony snapped. "Don't lie to yourselves. If you come with me, I'll protect you and you can help me get Peter back."
The two looked at each other, silently having a conversation with their eyes. The both looked back at Tony.
"Deal," they said in sync. Tony grabbed them both under one arm, and May with the other.
They were drawing ever closer to his kid.
Peter watched as Not-Peter lazily entered the room. Not-Pepper was watching him reproachfully, as though he was doing it to specifically annoy her. Peter remembered (with a grin on the inside) that even real Pepper hated people being late.
"We have a problem," Not-Pepper admitted, turning to face a third person in the room. From the way Not-Peter bent into an awkward bow, Peter guessed that it was Swivilla, though neither of them had ever seen her before.
Swivilla was small and she looked very cat like. She was curled into her pod chair, her silky brown hair falling over her face, obscuring her eyes. Peter could only tell that she was glancing back and forth around the room, never quite still.
"Tell me, then," was all she said, and her words were smooth and confident.
"Tony Stark... apprehended our two spies," Not-Pepper said slowly, as though she didn't want to say it at all.
"Ah, well," Swivilla didn't seem to care, "Hopefully they told him where we are located?"
"They did," Not-Pepper said reluctantly.
"Then what," Swivilla asked with a completely fake smile, "Is the problem?"
"They told him the rest of the plan as well," Not-Pepper looked like she was trying to force the words out of her mouth.
Swivilla froze, then looked carefully at Not-Pepper.
"If you are lying to me to try to get me to not trust them, I will peel your skin off," Swivilla paused, "Then wear it is as a coat."
"I'm not lying," Not-Pepper said eagerly, "Do you wish to see the video footage?"
Swivilla's shriek was quick and startling. "NO!"
Not-Pepper cowered, and Peter fought Not-Peter to not do the same.
"You will find Tony Stark, Ms. Potts, and you will murder him," Swivilla seethed. Not-Pepper nodded quickly and reassuringly.
"Good," Swivilla took a deep (calming?) breath. "He does not know that you are under my influence yet, I hope?"
"The traitors have not told him," Not-Pepper spat.
"Then he will trust you until the final moment," Swivilla grinned maliciously, "You will kill him."
"Of course," Not-Pepper said without a moment's pause.
I have to figure out how to warn him, Peter thought desperately, and fast.
Tony stared at Fiona and Drien, the two spies from the Mob. He had the feeling that they were telling the truth, and yet he didn't quite trust them all the same.
"Do you want to take a shower?" May broke the silence, being the host to their unconventional guests.
Drien shook his head, "Some food would be nice."
Fiona shot him a look but everyone ignored her. Just as Tony can back with four sandwiches in his hands, FRIDAY announced,
"Boss, Virginia Potts entered the building. Do you want me to send her up?"
Tony froze, momentarily leaving his senses behind.
"Yes, god, yes, send her up," he begged, not caring that May was sending him a warning look.
"Tony, she's under the-" she began, but was cut off by the loud ding of the elevator arriving.
Tony didn't care what Pepper was under as long as she was here. He waited with baited breath as the elevator door slid open...
There she stood, her lovely strawberry blonde hair in a tight ponytail, her feet slipped into sharp maroon heels, her legs long and slim. Tony let his eyes wander all over her before resting on her face - and that's when he realized that something was wrong. She was smiling, but her eyes were hard and cold. But it was Pepper and she had every right to be mad at him, he was a horrible person. He had let Peter be kidnapped, maybe now that's why her eyes weren't smiling.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered, his voice cracking.
"It's okay!" Pepper said cheerfully, and Tony was startled out of his dreams. This wasn't Pepper. The real her would've been at his side in an instant, holding him while the tears flooded his cheeks. This fake thing didn't even realize that he was tearing himself apart from the inside out. She's under the... the serum. This was Pepper's body, Pepper's face, Pepper's clothes, but it was not Pepper. Whatever was inside her was only masked by a Pepper look alike. Tony wondered if Pepper was in there at all. But he had work to do.
He forced a smile onto his face.
"Great! Pep, where've you been?"
A quick look of shock passed over Pepper's face, so fast that anyone who didn't know her would've missed it. But Tony knew her. Was that shock Fake Pepper astounded that her ploy had worked, or real Pepper, hidden away, astonished that he didn't recognize that it wasn't her?
"I took a break," Fake Pepper said, "I'm ready to come back now, if you'll have me."
"Yup, awesome," Tony fought back an overwhelming urge to sob. "This is May, and this is Fiona, and this is Drien. May's son Peter - sure you remember him - has been kidnapped. So we're interrogating Fiona and Drien to see if they have information."
Anyone could've seen that Tony was not okay. His words, usually laced with sarcasm and innuendos, was like a child attempting to explain a complicated situation. Fake Pepper, however, was focused on the Fiona and Dri
en.
"If you're interrogating them, why are they not tied?" She asked, "Why did you make food for them?"
Ah, yes, Tony had forgotten that Pepper was clever, and her not-self seemed to be just as much, if not as adept at reading Tony.
"We decided to give them a break," Tony shaped his mouth into what he hoped passed for a grin, "You know we're good people, Pepper."
And there it was, his plea to see the real Pepper, his hope.
"Yes, I know, Tony."
He glimpsed her then, her eyes melting into a loving, worrying expression, the Pepper he knew and loved so much. Tony bit back a gasp. Pepper was still there, he could feel it.
It may have complicated things, but Tony felt like he could finally breath again.
"She has done it," Swivilla announced, "She has won Stark over."
Peter mentally shivered, but Not-Peter broke out into a grin.
"Lovely, Miss, everything is back on track," Not-Peter said. Swivilla nodded, then waved her hand dismissively. Not-Peter walked out of the room, heading towards his sleeping quarters. Peter knew, instinctively, that the only way to save Tony now was to warn him. Tony trusted and loved and cared too much to realize that Pepper wasn't real. Peter also knew that the effort of fighting with the thing in control of his body had the power to kill him. But Mr. Stark is going to die.
Listen to me, Peter thought, and his body froze as Not-Peter heard Peter's voice.
We are going to warn Tony.
Peter focused on his feet, pushing them in the direction opposite of where Not-Peter wanted to go. He felt like his foot was being dragged through spikes covered in poison, but he struggled onward. Two steps took eternity, and Peter could barely feel anything but pain. He pushed himself down the hallway, feeling like his skin was being pulled of his body with a burning rod of metal. He reached the room he knew Swivilla used for calls. He tapped the door, that taking more effort than any walking had done. He could feel Not-Peter fighting him, but Peter had something to fight for and he sure as hell wasn't going to give up.
Inside the room, an entire wall was covered with contacts of various people, some larger than others. Thankfully, Tony Stark made up the entire center, a giant among the other numbers. Peter fell on top of the number, too tired to actually lift his hand and press it. Now bright light made his head feel like it was about to implode and tiny black spots started dancing across his vision. There was too much pain to think, and Peter couldn't even tell if Tony was on the other end of the line.
"We're not real," was all Peter could manage to say before he fell to his knees. He vomited on the floor, his entire body feeling like it was dunked in acid. He shook, not strong enough to hold himself upright, then fell to the ground with a clatter, his head landing in the throw up.
From far away, he heard Mr. Stark's voice.
"Peter? Peter, come back to me! Peter, tell me you're okay!"
Peter tried to say, I'm okay, but shards of glass were impaling him, he was sure, and his throat was closing and he couldn't breath and -
Peter fell unconscious, blackness covering all the pain in a blanket of ignorance.
Tony sat back, massaging his temple. We're not real. We're not real. We're not real.
"What was it?" Pepper - Fake Pepper - entered the room. Tony turned away from her. Looking at her was too painful, too damaging. She ran her fingers stiffly through his hair, being so close to his love, his life, but not close enough.
"Nothing," Tony got up, shying away from her touch. "Go to bed, Pep, I'll join you soon."
She laughed and winked, "I'm sure you will."
The thought of making love to this shell of his... girlfriend? ex? disgusted him. She never would have pushed him. She never would have even mentioned it in his present state, but he choked out a laugh that sounded like a sob even to his own ears. She was satisfied, though, and left with a little smirk, hiking her skirt up slowly. As soon as she was out of earshot, Tony banged his fist against the table. We're not real. Peter had been injected as well, then. He had to develop something to get them back, he realized, but first he had to take Fake Pepper into custody. He sighed, eyeing the arm of his Iron Man suit. He held out his own appendage and muttered a few key words. The arm assembled around his own, and he flexed his hand, watching the hand rev up. It shot a blast of blue light into the wall, leaving a smoking hole in its wake. His other hand shaking with too much he loaded a sedative into a function he had been installing before Pirates of the Caribbean. He shut the memory away in his mind, focusing on the task at hand.
Once properly installed, Tony headed slowly up the stairs, making his way quietly to his bedroom where he knew that Fake Pepper was waiting. She was reclining on the bed in what was supposed to have been a seductive position, but real Pepper knew that Tony didn't like being seduced, he liked to know where the stood, to not pretend to pretend.
He held up the Iron hand, ready to fall back in a role that he had played for a very long time. Back when he was a well known playboy, foreplay had been second nature. Now, he was unsteady and unsure.
"Thought we'd have a bit of fun," Tony said stiffly. She giggled flirtatiously, a sound that real Pepper would never have made. He didn't want to make this any longer than he had to. He moved towards her in what he hoped was a sexy manner. She didn't flinch, which was a good sign. He smiled slyly (though it felt like a scowl). Before he could even raise his hand, however, he felt something cold press against his head. He stared in disbelief as Fake Pepper pressed a gun against his head.
"You're an idiot, you know that?" Tony said, "I am wearing a part of my suit. Your gun won't be fast enough to kill me before I blast you to pieces."
"But you won't," Fake Pepper said silkily, "I always hated you treating me like trash. That's why this has to happen."
"Oh, don't lie," Tony snapped, "We both know that you're not Pepper. I'll have no trouble exploding you."
"But Pepper's still in me," she crooned. "You wouldn't try to destroy me."
"You're right," Tony cocked his head, "But I don't have to."
Without another word, he shot a sedative into her open mouth, still reminiscent of the person she had tried to play. She lay, unconscious on the bed, and Tony gasped, trying to keep the tears inside his head. It was useless. Scalding tears slid down his scruffy cheeks. He clung to Pepper's unmoving body, sobbing until he couldn't feel anything anymore.
We're not real.
Peter awoke in another cold cell. He was lying face down on hard, metal ground, the taste of blood overpowering in his mouth. He tried to struggle upwards, but just moving his hands made his stomach turn over. He choked back a gag, and strained his ears for noise. After a couple seconds, he heard low voices that seemed to be coming from behind a closed door.
"Is he still mine?" the voice was unmistakably Swivilla's. The other was startlingly familiar, but Peter knew that it couldn't be.
"We don't know yet," she responded, "We have to wait until he wakes up."
"We have lost Virginia," Swivilla growled, "We have almost lost Peter. We have lost Fiona and Drien. How will we bring down Stark if our plans keep failing? Once he's here, what if the serum doesn't work on him?"
"He may be an avenger, but he's human," the second person said. Was it her? Impossible. "No serum, no giant green monster bottled up inside, no god qualities, no background training on resisting controlling serums. He may be smart and rich, but he's just as susceptible as the next person."
Mr. Stark will beat the serum, just like I did.
Peter had to believe that, had to, because otherwise how would Mr. Stark come out of this alive? Peter's message had been too vague, Mr. Stark could never have understood it. Somehow, Fake-Pepper was gone, though whether or not real Pepper was alive was a mystery. That also meant that Fake-Pepper, at least, has failed to assassinate Mr. Stark. If they wanted Peter to go in and do the honors, then Peter knew that he could fight it. But Mr. Stark would never hurt Peter, ever, even if it meant saving his own life, and that could be his downfall.
And then there was her. If she was who Peter thought she was, then Mr. Stark would be dead as soon as she wanted. How could she be working for Swivilla? It was unthinkable. For that matter, why did Swivilla hate Mr. Stark so much?
Peter's thoughts were cut off as the scraping of chairs on the floor squealed in the next room.
"He's awake," Swivilla announced, "His heart rate has picked up. Go into the next room and bring him here. Now."
"Don't you think we should check if he's himself or not?" The other asked boldly. Peter would know soon enough if it was who he thought it was.
"No point," Swivilla said, "We'll find out soon enough."
"Fine," the woman stood up and began walking towards the door, based on the sound of her boots hitting the ground.
He heard a door open, then more footsteps, then another door much closer open. He still couldn't lift his head, but the woman dragged him up to her level so he was staring into her eyes anyway.
Peter's eyes hazel eyes filled with disbelief as he stared into her green ones, his entire body screaming in pain at the sudden change in position. It took him a moment to cut through the fog of nausea and spikes of pain.
"Nice to see you again, Peter," Natasha Romanoff said softly. She raised her hand and curled it into a fist. "You're going to have to go to sleep again."
Her first made contact with his head in a sickening crunch, and Peter's world dissolved into darkness.
"I've got it," Bruce announced, holding up a needle. "Tony, how're you doing?"
"Better now that you have an antidote."
Late the night before, Tony had called Bruce in, begging him to help him. Unsurprisingly, Bruce had immediately agreed. He had only arrived a few hours ago, but with Fake Pepper already unconscious and ready to be studied it was child's play for the two geniuses.
"It works?" May asked anxiously. Bruce was still eyeing Tony suspiciously, so he plucked the syringe from Bruce's hand.
"Let's try it on Pep and see," he said, trying to keep his voice light. Bruce was far more perceptive than May, at least about Tony.
He injected a quick dose of the antidote, which seemed to be an anti-sedative as well. Pepper (or Fake Pepper?) stirred after a few moments, waking up with a groan. She looked around blearily, confused.
"Tony?" she asked, whipping her head around till she caught sight of him, "Is she gone?"
"You... you remember?" Tony asked, his heart breaking and healing at the same time. He untied her and she grabbed him into a fierce hug.
"We'll be okay," she assured him. He fought back tears and nodded gratefully. "And Peter's going to be okay. Swivilla is using him to get to you."
"Swivilla?" Bruce asked curiously. Pepper explained the whole situation.
"When she injects you, your personality isn't taken over, it's just repressed," Pepper said, "Which is why Peter was able to fight it."
"So Tony can't go, or he might be injected" Bruce said thoughtfully.
"Screw that, I'll just avoid swivelly-chair," Tony scoffed, "Its my fault Peter is there in the first place."
"Listen, Tony, you have to be careful."
A rush of affection for Pepper flooded through him and he crushed her to his side once more. She hadn't even considered telling him no as she might once have done. She knew that there was no point, but she still warned him.
"Why does she want to bring Tony down?" Bruce asked.
"She grew up extremely clever in an abusive household," Pepper sighed in a sympathetic way, "So did Tony, somewhat. Look at where he is, and where she is. For some twisted reason she blames him for her not making it big. She thinks he lied about how his parents were for pity."
Tony let out a cold, mirthless laugh, "So she decided to capture a child? Really strengthening her case, isn't she?"
Pepper glanced at him. She knew that he wasn't okay, but he had to hold on just until Peter was safe.
"Pep, where is Peter?" He asked, "I'm gonna go in, administer the antidote, and get him out. Then we can deal with Swivilla."
"You think it's going to be that easy?" May demanded.
"Something will undoubtedly go wrong," Pepper put her hand on Tony's shoulder, "Don't be rash."
"I'm not being rash," Tony clenched his fists, "I'm saving my kid."
Pepper removed her hand, "I know. Just - don't forget that you're important, too."
For the first time in his life, Tony didn't have anything to say.