𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 — we're going on a trip

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 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 had been brewing within the very pit of Emilia's stomach hadn't subsided. Bruce had been dropped off at the sanctum by Tony, after carrying the man in his iron grip. The poor doctor looked impeccably green, and not as though the Hulk would come out and join the fray. His legs had trembled upon being set on the ground, and his hand had been planted on the wall as he wheezed.

 Wong was there to greet them, and though the sight of her old friend would have often caused peace to overcome her, Emilia was only unsettled by his ragged appearance. Maw had bombarded the man with assault after assault, leaving him unconscious and unable to provide Stephen with assistance.

 Emilia and Tony lingered for barely a moment before Stark blasted off, loud and rushed words being spoken to the kid who had been stolen by the spaceship's beam. Emilia spared a forlorn look towards the friends she was to leave behind, sadness ebbing in as the cloak carried her towards Tony with as much speed as it could muster.

 Her face stung from the wind that nipped at her cheeks, her hair flew widely around her, barely able to see as the cloak pushed itself further and further, higher into the sky... Closer to Stephen.

 "What the hell are you doing?" Came Tony's voice, nothing but utter exasperation in his muffled voice as he fell to her side, blasters keeping him afloat.

 "I'm not leaving Stephen alone!" Emilia yelled, her voice being eaten by the air that breezed past them.

"You think your little cape will get you up there? Tell me, Doctor, how is it you'll breathe?"

 He was right. His insinuation that the cloak would be a futile attempt to catch up to the spaceship was completely correct. She was falling behind, but there was no way she could ever bring herself to turn back. As for the breathing issue... Well, that wouldn't be a problem.

 With a narrowed gaze, Emilia forced her hands forth, ignoring the sting of the wind. The cold bit at the tips of her calloused fingers as a wave of blue was emitted from them. A bubble formed, starting before their very eyes until it wrapped around them both like a blanket.

 "Huh..." Tony breathed as he allowed the wind to push him back, his shining metal arms that flashed with the sunlight wrapped around her waist, and with a tight hold on her, he opened his mouth, "Well then, ready?"

 "Ready."

 The blasters on the very bottom of Tony's suit sparked further to life, a short stream of fire emitting from them as they carried the duo higher into the sky, their eyes set on nothing but the Ship.

 Clouds seemingly parted around them, and the stinging bite of the air that rushed them by was no longer present as it bounced off the bubble protecting them. It had taken Emilia quite some time to develop her skill, her protective bubble... And in all honesty, it had come out of nowhere.

 It had been a spur of the moment action during a particularly rough training session against both Stephen and Wong; the two of them had made the decision to fight her two on one, and it had certainly driven her to her limits. They had surrounded her, lassos of amber and shields of gold had swarmed her, practically screaming for her to admit defeat and give in, or to step it up a notch. She had chosen the latter. A sudden yell had torn from her throat, arms thrown to the side mere moments before Stephen's attack was to connect with her... It had bounced off.

 From that very moment, it came naturally. She thought it, and came to her. It kept everything around her in, and everything outside, out. Of course there were limitations, every hit to the blue, rippling bubble made it heavier, harder to keep whole.

 But for now, drifting through the sky without a single attack being fired at them, all it was doing was keeping Emilia breathing.

 Tony cursed beneath his helmet, they were falling behind and the ship was steadily moving out of their view; if they continued like they were, he'd never reach Peter, or Stephen, in time.

 "You might wanna close your eyes," Tony muttered, though Emilia didn't shift. In fact, all she did was blink, look back at the man and returned her gaze to the sky once more. He nodded to himself; all he could think about was saving Peter, the mere thought of something happening to him — it made his mind flicker with every single bad thing that had happened to the people he had ever cared for.

 The nonchalance Emilia showed to him was just a clear indicator that the feeling within his blood was stirring through hers as well; the need to save the person they cared for no matter what.

 "Alright, give me a little juice, F.R.I.D.A.Y.." Tony called out to his intuitive suit, metal-coated hands firmly clasped around Emilia's waist. The suit, as ever, obeyed the orders they were provided with; the blasters at the bottom of Tony's feet grew larger as the nanotech swarmed their way towards their destination, and after mere moments, two blasters were combined into one.

 The sudden jolt of speed that threw the pair forth made Emilia's stomach churn but the concentration she had on the bubble that surrounded them never faltered. The blue wavered, it flickered and flashed like television static as they shot through the air, closer to the circular ship.

 A small figure perched upon the ring in the sky came into view and Emilia heard the sigh of relief that had slipped from Tony's lips. She was still mildly confused as to what the relationship between the two was; Emilia was almost certain that Tony Stark did not have a son... Or any children at all... Yet the way he acted with the young teen that was so obviously beneath the suit of red, was incredibly fatherly.

 The outbursts of concern, the tone in which Tony spoke was so... Soft; it lacked any and all sarcasm that the man was known to spout. The hitch in his breath that had been poorly concealed when the kid had been spotted, and the sigh of relief...

 Emilia's brows curled together, a small line appearing between them as she focused herself back on the task at hand; keeping the air from tearing her apart. Tony, however, spoke once more, "Unlock seventeen-A."

 They continued speeding through the air, the ship that was departing their world growing closer at last. Tony narrowed his gaze, the A.I of his suit zooming in on Peter who did his best to keep a hold of the ship whilst gushing winds blew past his form.

 "Pete, you gotta let go." Tony rushed out, finally revealing the kid's name to Emilia who aptly stored it in her mind as she kept her attention on both the power emanating from her fingertips and the soft lilt of his voice. It was as light as a feather, soothing the kid that was barely hanging onto the ship far above them, "I'll catch you."

 He had said it with such conviction that Emilia had absolutely no doubt in her mind that Tony would follow through; that he'd catch Peter.

 Emilia couldn't hear whatever response Peter gave back, just the wind that bounced from their jittery shield, and the whirring of Tony's suit that kept her within a firm grip. Emilia merely blinked as a piece of metal flew by the pair, heading towards Peter at a far greater speed than they were.

 The capsule made of glistening metal blasted onwards, the signature Tony Stark red hurtling through the sky as it left a trail behind it. It curled in the air, redirecting as the small figure hanging onto the ship for dear life, finally let go. His fingers uncurled, each digit going numb as his eyes fluttered shut; lungs devoid of air.

 The young boy, mask now torn from his face, fell backwards as the wind nipped at the skin of his cheeks. It didn't take long for the bundle of metal that Tony had deployed to fly forth and burst into pieces, allowing whatever was inside to latch onto Peter.

 Emilia could barely see what was happening, her view obscured by their barrier and the space between them; but even still, she could see the glistening red and black metal crawl over Peter, coating his skin until it had covered each and every part of his body. The eyes of his new suit were glowing, a vibrant cobalt blue shining as the boy finally stood to his feet on the base of the circular ship.

 "Happy trails, kid." Tony abruptly spoke, relief evident in his voice as s shallow breath parted the way for his words to escape, "F.R.I.D.A.Y., take him home."

 He watched silently as Peter was flung from the ship, a parachute erupting from his suit and dragging him back to earth... The mere thought of the boy staying aboard, joining himself and Emilia to retrieve Stephen... If they even could, was a nightmare to him. Tony Stark was impulsive, he made decisions without always thinking of the consequences, and this time, the consequence might just be that they'd be making a one-way trip.

 His mind was filled with flashes of the fight in New York back in twenty-twelve; the day Loki came to Earth and invaded with an army, all at the word of Thanos. His heart pounded away within his metal suit, and he was almost certain it was echoing and rattling against his head. The nightmares that blossomed from that day had never ceased, and the thought of facing the being that had spurred them to fruition made him shudder.

 Emilia, in the silence that surrounded herself and Tony, spoke nothing of the heavy breathing that had suddenly begun bristling from Tony. She said nothing of the hitch in his breath moments after Peter had been banished from the ship. She kept silent because she knew what all of it meant; fear, and if anyone was to understand fear... It was Emilia.

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 Emilia had often wondered what space would be like; how it would feel for her feet to land on another planet. How would the air feel? How would the ground fall apart beneath her touch? Would the sky be alight with galaxies and stars, or would there be an endless expanse of nothing but darkness?

 How would it feel for her toes to be plied from the ground, lifted into the air without anything forcing her back down? Would she be carried away or would she mindlessly wander?

 But now, as Tony finally pried his suit encased arms from her form, she finally realised that she didn't care. Her mind didn't have the capacity to carve out room to look around in awe, to wonder of what was outside the giant metal ring she stood upon. All she could think about was Stephen. That wasn't exactly a new development.

 Emilia's mind was often filled with thoughts of the Master of the Mystic Arts; whether they were thoughts of fondness, the urge to run her calloused fingertips through his dark hair, twirling those strands of grey before sliding her skin to his cheeks. Thoughts of sweat sheened bodies lying beneath tangled sheets in the midst of the night, nothing but moonlight seeping through the windows as they breathed heavy breaths and let out mindless laughs. Or even thoughts of utter exasperation upon finding Stephen rifling through things meant to be untouched, ideas of his that would send her spiralling into chastising.

 But they were often about him.

 So now, hearing his screams echoing through the ship, his hoarse voice grating against her ears and heart... No, she couldn't allow herself to indulge in those once pure and curious thoughts.

 "Boss, incoming call from Miss Potts." F.R.I.D.A.Y. spoke, finally allowing Emilia to wrench her attention from Stephens' yells of pain. She could only imagine the terror rippling through Pepper Potts' blood; Emilia had no doubt in her mind that the poor woman was feeling the same way as she; hopeless and utterly terrified...

 Pepper had dealt with the genius that is Tony Stark for years; doting on him, chastising him, and loving him throughout all of his endeavours, whether they tore her heart from her chest or not. She had watched him fight, she had been waiting with open arms when he finally stumbled home with dried blood upon his cheeks and dents staining his suits; and now she had watched him leave once more, wondering if he'd ever come home.

 Tony, with a sigh, allowed the mask that enclosed his features to fall from his skin. The lines in his face seemed deeper as he thought of his fiancee waiting for his return. He felt selfish for leaving her behind with nothing but worry and fear etching at her skin... But he couldn't sit around doing nothing whilst Earth was being threatened once again... Whilst she was being threatened once again.

 "Tony?" The panic that rippled within Pepper's voice had Emilia wincing, turning away as she offered Tony some semblance of privacy within the ship, "Oh, my God. Are you alright? What's going on?"

 Tony hesitated for a short moment, eyes glued to the interior of the ship. He didn't want to tell her, he didn't want to break her heart again... It was all he seemed to do, and it made his stomach churn. Her voice begged him for answers and his eyes clamped shut as he swallowed harshly, "Yeah, I'm fine... I just think we might have to push our eight-thirty res."

 "... Why?"

 "Just 'cause I'll... probably not make it back for a while."

 Tony cocked his head, stepping closer to the rippling electricity within the ship, his steps making a quiet echo as metal stomped on metal.

 "Tell me you're not on that ship."

 The desperation in her voice made him pause. His fingers flexed by his side, curling into a fist as his head fell; he had the decency to allow shame to pulsate through his voice, "Yeah."

 "God, no. Please tell me you're not on that ship."

 "Honey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I don't know what to say."

 "Come back here, Tony. I swear to God..." Her voice began to fade, the sound of static erupting as it began to drown out the sound of Pepper Potts' voice. Tony's heart beat faster with every crackle, every distorted syllable that Pepper spoke, almost pleading that she wouldn't disappear.

 "Pep?" He breathed, "Pepper?"

 "Boss, we're losing her." F.R.I.D.A.Y.s stoic voice called out. The A.I's voice wavered, drawing Emilia's attention to the billionaire. If F.R.I.D.A.Y. disappeared too, it would just be the two of them, no reinforcements, no information. "I'm going too..."

 A final crackle rang out, and then silence befell them both, settling over them like a heavy blanket. It weighed them down, hearts heavy as they listened to the whirring of the ship they were suddenly standing within.

 Tony moved first, his fingers finally falling slack from the fist they had been balled within; the metal that surrounded his feet echoed ever so slightly as he took cautious steps to the edge of the metal platform they were standing upon. Emilia joined his side, peering over.

 The cloak that had been ever so delicately settled on Emilia's shoulders drifted from her body. The movement of the crimson material caused Tony to jolt, his hand darting out as his repulsors fired up, ready to blast. Upon the realisation that it was, in fact, just a cloak, as well as meeting the raised brow of Emilia, he sighed and dropped his arm, "That is one seriously loyal piece of outerwear, isn't it?"

 A laugh tried to bubble within Emilia's throat as the cloak flew to her side, patting her forearm with the edge of its scarlet material in what Tony assumed to be a soothing manner. He had built suits and robots from the ground up, and yet as he stared at the floating red blanket before him, he shook his head in bewilderment. It was the very thing that let Stephen fly; it carried his weight and somehow knew where to go...

 "Speaking of loyalty..." A light, boyish voice chimed out, and Emilia immediately spun to face their newcomer. The voice had immediately been recognisable, even despite the short conversation she'd had with the boy in the red suit. And there he was. Peter, encased in a new, gleaming metal suit, handing from a web that was stuck to the top of the ship.

 Emilia blinked, her gaze sliding to Tony whose mouth was agape as he stared at the boy. Tony's heart had stopped. His eyes narrowed and in all honesty, he couldn't tell if it was from anger at the boy for coming back like the little insect he was, or utter concern that his rescue mission now included a full-time babysitting job.

 "What the —" Tony muttered out as Peter glanced between the two adults before him, eyes lingering on Emilia for a beat before he finally shrugged to himself and allowed the mask that covered his face to fade away. If Tony trusted her enough to fight side by side, then he did too, without question.

 Peter jumped forwards, arms outstretched as if trying to pause the chastising ramble Tony was sure to spout; he'd been on the receiving end of those far too many times. "I know what you're gonna say."

 "You should not be here."

 "I was gonna go home —"

 "— I don't wanna hear it —" Tony interrupted, and Emilia couldn't help but share a glance with the cloak that fluttered by her side.

 "— But it was such a long way down and I thought about you on the way —"

 "— And now I gotta hear it —"

 "— And I kinda stuck to the side of the ship. And this suit is ridiculously intuitive, by the way. So if anything, it's kinda your fault that I'm here."

 Emilia winced at the boy's wording, taking a small step back as Tony scoffed, his lips parted as he pointed a finger at his protege, "What did you just say?"

 Peter immediately backtracked upon seeing the way his mentor's eye twitched. A lump in his throat was swallowed, "I take that back... " He cleared his throat lightly, a short squeak escaping him as he glanced around the ship, "And now I'm here, in space."

 "Yeah." Tony breathed, his voice becoming harder as he stepped closer to Peter, "Right where I don't want you to be. This isn't Coney Island. This isn't a field trip. It's a one-way ticket." His voice lowered to a whisper as his mind suddenly tortured him with the thoughts of never seeing Pepper again, or May never seeing Peter, "You hear me? Don't pretend like you thought this through —"

 "— No, I did think this through —"

 "— You could not have possibly thought this through."

 Peter finally relented and dropped his gaze to the ground, tapping the tips of his metal-covered toes against the grating, wincing as metal scratched against metal. Tony was right, he hadn't thought it through... Not properly anyway. 

 Tony Stark — Iron Man — was his hero, and he wanted to make him proud. Peter had an unquenchable need to prove himself, and a desire to help people. So yeah, he didn't think it through. the only thoughts that had passed through his mind was the fact that Tony and Emilia would be alone, and the wizard with the necklace needed saving. That's where his thoughts had ended before he had made the decision to climb aboard the ship that was now bringing them to space, and bringing them far away from their homes.

Peter's shoulders bunched up before he sighed and scratched at his neck, shuddering at the cold metal that covered his fingertips, "It's just — you can't be a friendly neighbourhood spider-man when there's no neighbourhood."

 Emilia's brows drew together before she finally shook her head and slotted herself between the two. Her hands stretched out, one on each of their chests, "Listen, this whole father-son thing is... Adorable... and whilst I agree with you," Emilia looked to Tony before sliding her eyes to Peter, "That you should not be here. You are, and that can't be changed. What can be changed, is the fact that my idiot is down there, getting tortured so that an alien can steal the Time Stone and take it to Thanos... Can we focus on that, please?"

 Tony clenched his jaw, teeth gritting together as he stared at Peter over Emilia's head. He wanted nothing more than to just grab hold of the boy and toss him from the ship, hoping to hell and back that he'd find his way back home, but that just wasn't feasible. His eyes slowly fell shut as his body slumped, "Alright."

 Peter merely nodded, his lips clamped together in a thin line as he regarded his mentor's state. Even Peter Parker, oblivious to most social cues, could easily see the stress that dug into Tony's features. The pointed downturn of his lips, the tight jaw, and the fear that had flashed through his chestnut gaze. He felt terrible for being the cause, yet he wanted to help.

 "Thank you," Emilia muttered, her hands falling from the duo as she wrung them together in front of her, sighing lightly as the cloak came to rest on her shoulder once more; its weight grounding her. She once again peered over the edge of their platform, eyes latching onto Stephen's floating form.

 Maw stood before the Master of the Mystic Arts, fingers wiggling as he controlled his weapons; glistening shards of what looked like glass jostled in the air, moving with every twitch of the alien's fingers. Some were grazing Stephen's skin, others had already cut through the layers of skin of cheeks, drawing out shrill screams of utter pain.

 The sounds, the sight, they pulled a shaky breath from Emilia's trembling body. She couldn't stand the sight of watching him get hurt. They had always saved one another. Over the time that she and Stephen had been together, spending countless months by one another's side within the Sanctum, they had participated in countless missions. Every single time they had each other's back.

 Stephen had saved her, and she had saved him. Now she stood idle as she watched him get tortured.

 Tony sauntered to her side whilst Peter flanked the other, curious brown eyes watching the scene below, though as another scream tore through Stephen's lips, the teenager backed up a step with eyes clamped shut.

 "What's the plan, Em? The three of us take him?" Tony muttered, eyes drifting from Stephen to Maw, before finally settling on the woman beside him, watching closely as she lightly patted Peter's forearm, bringing him back to reality.

 "Yeah, no." Emilia scoffed lightly, a pointed stare on Tony, "You fought him, and lost." She rolled her eyes at Tony's huff before gazing at Peter, "You chased him, and lost. We need something better than that, something that would preferably keep Stephen in one piece."

 As she looked between the two that stood on either side of her form, she trailed her eyes along the metal of their suits. Tony's suit had come to him without so much as a word falling from his lips; and even despite his A.I. F.R.I.D.A.Y. being down for the count, the suit still operated to his whims. So did Peters. The young boy had a suit coded to him, it had trailed and found its way to Peter the moment Tony had uttered the word 'deploy'... Therefore, it was only obvious that the suits could easily be told to go elsewhere.

 "Tony." Emilia spoke up as she lightly tapped against the metal covering his right arm, "That suit of yours... Could you send it somewhere?"

 Tony's eyes narrowed into slits as he regarded the Doctor. His thoughts were on the very same line as her own, though he had the advantage of knowing all the answers. The nano-tech listened to him, mere thoughts that ratted inside Tony's eccentric head was enough to command the suit that wrapped around his body, and he easily caught on to what she was implying.

 "You want me to send my suit down to Gandalf?"

 Emilia stayed silent as she pondered on the nickname for a mere second, her lips involuntarily curling upwards in amusement; Stephen would have hated it. "If you send it down to him, his body will be protected from whatever they are —" She gestured to the shards that buried themselves in Stephens skin, "— That way he's safe and so is the Stone, we just have to figure out the best way to get rid of... "

 "Squidward?"

 "Sure, yeah."

 "Oh!" A hushed exclamation came from Peter, his eyes positively filled with vigour as he practically bounced on his feet. The young boy brought his excited stare to Emilia who tilted her head in question, "Have you ever seen this really old movie, Aliens?"

 From the way Tony had scoffed, it was obvious that the boy was prone to such outbursts... Luckily for him, Emilia had seen it, for she and Bruce often played movies whilst working, allowing the noise in the background to soothe them, whilst silence seemed to distract them. Bruce had often expressed his utter disdain for horror movies, and even thrillers, preferring romantic comedies and documentaries. Whilst Emilia was the very opposite; delighting in that classic piano music that would erupt when a scare or tense moment was nearing.

 She had easily caught onto what Peter was thinking, and, with a grin, she nodded to the teenager, "That just might work."

 "Please don't entertain his pop culture references." Tony muttered, jabbing his elbow lightly into Emilia's side.

 "You're kidding, right?" Emilia breathed a laugh, delighting in the look of pure confusion that settled upon Tony's face, "You're where he gets it from, obviously."

 "Excuse me?"

 "Squidward? Gandalf? Anymore you wanna get off your chest?"

 Peter sniggered from beside the woman, cheeks flushing as he watched his mentor fumble his words whilst Tony glared a hole into Emilia's forehead; promptly flicking the very same spot, "Rude. Now shut up and let's save your damn wizard and his special pet rock."

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06-03-2022

i hope you all enjoyed this chapter; sorry for the break between this one and the last, it's just that I've grown very tired of watching as my read count goes up, yet people still don't comment or leave feedback. 

If this continues i will be scrapping my books and I'll wrap up my time on wattpad; this may seem drastic, but i only share these books to see what you all think, to see what parts resonate with you. i adore seeing your comments and the lack of them recently had made my motivation drop, and my love for writing is fading.

So, please remember to comment throughout the chapter and tell me your thoughts <3