"Spider-man's tracker has gone offline."

Tony who was supposed to be on a relaxing holiday with his new fiance at their Miami home; Who explicitly told everyone and everything that he was not to be bothered, even in dire circumstances; Wasn't sure he heard F.R.I.D.A.Y. correctly.

He turned his attention away from Pepper, offering a small apology, and in the general direction where he assumed the dissociated voice came from in his living room. "What?"

"It seems that it was either disabled, or destroyed, sir," F.R.I.D.A.Y. continued.

"Call him," Tony ordered. He felt himself sigh deeply, clearly agitated. Damn kid couldn't be left alone for a week without getting into trouble. If he thought that he could just sneak around while Tony was out of state, he had another thing coming. Pepper took ahold of his hand in an effort to calm him. He turned to her and flashed a smile letting her know that he appreciated the gesture.

"Boss, it seems that his phone has been disconnected."

"The Hell?" Tony jumped up from his seat on the couch. Pepper followed in suit, tablet in hand, over to the launch pad where Tony's suit was waiting for him. He barked orders to F.R.I.D.A.Y. to keep his flight path from Miami to New York clear of airlines.

"Tony," Pepper called out to him; fear laced in her voice. "Oh my God."

Tony turned to her, and her expression all but made him run to her. He looked over her shoulder onto the tablet. Live news feed from New York featured a building that had the top half blown clean off. Fire and smoke flooded the sky. People were running away from the building and screaming behind the reporter; Firemen could be seen dowsing the flames as best as they could.

"That's Peter's apartment building," Tony choked out. He stepped away, and back towards the launch pad. As he suited up, he overheard the reporter state that the explosion may have been due to a gas leak and therefore completely accidental. He doubted that. He turned to face Pepper, face mask up. "Pep," he began. "I'm so sorry, I-"

"Tony, don't waste anymore time," she interrupted him. "Just go!"

God he loved her so much.

Down the mask went; and up he went towards his destination. He could feel the metal of the suit rattle against his body. He was pushing his limits, but he didn't care. The image of the blown-away building was burned into his mind. Knowing that Peter's apartment was definitely in the range of fire only fueled his fear.

F.R.I.D.A.Y. was flashing him warnings of overheating, and falling head first into the ocean below. He heeded them as he knew that he could be no help to Peter and May if he was busy dog-paddling to the shores of D.C. Only a few more minutes, and he'd be there.

"I'm coming, Peter."

Tony instructed F.R.I.D.A.Y. to upload images of the buildings residents who were affected by the blast, and their status. Twelve results appeared to his left, including the Parkers. He had them moved up to the top of the list.

He was over New Jersey when he noticed one of the portraits started blinking. It was a little girl who looked no older than ten. Tony's heart clenched when a large red 'X' flashed over her - She was dead. His eyes drifted over to Peter and May's portraits, and he promised himself that he would get them out of there alive.

Manhattan came into view over the horizon, and beyond the borough, he could see the black smoke. It wasn't as large as it was earlier meaning the worst of the fire was extinguished. He thanked God over and over. He veered downward and stopped just above the debris, surveying his area.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. I want you to pinpoint all the survivor's locations," he glanced upward seeing that a couple of the portraits had a glowing blue circle around them, signifying that they were found alive.

"Right away, boss," she replied.

Nine yellow circular dots entered his view. There were some of the people still in the building. Tony went for them first. He heard his AI issue a command, and felt his lungs breathe with fresh air as he entered the toxic building. The smoke was thick and blinding. Any normal human would have succumbed to the conditions within minutes. Luckily he had his suit to protect him.

The closest marker was twenty paces in front of him slightly to the right. Part of the roof had collapsed on the spot. He briefly glanced down to see a leg sticking out from the debris. As he neared, slight groaning could be heard. This civilian was still alive!

"Hello?" he called out to them, unsure of how to do the communication thing that EMTs did all the time. "Uhm, if you can hear me, I'm going to pull this chunk of ceiling off of you, okay?" he only heard a small groan in reply. "I'll take that as a 'go for it.' then. Just hang on."

Stretching his arms out, he grasped onto either side of the plaster. "Okay, F.R.I.D.A.Y., what's the best way to get this thing off without hurting them further?"

"You'll want to pull up at a ninety-degree angle, boss," she replied. "The ground directly behind you is stable enough to hold the debris without damaging the building further."

He thanked her, then did as she instructed. A young woman was revealed underneath. She was covered in blood, and what looked like white dust. Was that fucking asbestos fibers? Making a mental note to deal with that disaster later, he looked the woman over. She was barely conscience; turned her head upward slightly to look at him. Her expression shifted from fearful as she smiled at him.

"Iron Man," she muttered weakly.

"Yeah," Tony answered. "I'm here, uh,"

"Candace,"

"Okay, Candace. I'm going to need you to not talk too much, okay?" Content when she nodded, he directed his attention to F.R.I.D.A.Y., "Any serious injuries?"

"A mild concussion from the impact with the ceiling, and two broken ribs on her left. Everything else is minor, boss."

Tony knelt down beside Candace. "I'm going to get you out of here, okay? It might hurt a little bit, but the EMTs will be able to take care of you. Are you ready?"

"Uh-huh," she answered, bracing herself mentally and physically.

Tony situated himself to her right. He scooped his arms underneath her, and lifted. She cried in pain, which hurt him to hear. He cradled her on his chest. Whispered to her that everything was going to be okay. He slowly made his way out of the building, and floated down to where the emergency responders were set up. As soon as he touched ground, they ran up to him, stretcher beside them, and he helped by placing her on it.

They placed an oxygen mask on her. She started to tear up joyously. Candace took one last look at Ironman and pulled her arm up to gesture a thumbs-up at him. It did make him feel better surprisingly. He repeated the gesture, then turned back to help others, noticing that her portrait glowed blue.


Two long hours passed by with no sign of either Peter or May. Tony could hear his heart pounding in his head, and he could feel his blood pressure rising. He tried to distract himself by focusing on the portraits of the remaining victims. Including the Parkers, there were four total. He'd already gotten the survivors (and the dead) out from inside of the building, and the surrounding area where a few of them had been blown away from the property. Now, all that remained were the four who were practically buried under the foot of the building.

The base stood without giving way, but Tony had no idea for how much longer before the entire thing collapsed on him and the responders. Also the news reporters who were still thirsty for a good story. He knew they were just doing their jobs, but for God's sake there were people dying all around them! He silently thanked their presence, because it distracted him from jumping the gun about Peter and May's demise.

He wasn't as worried about Peter as he was about May. Peter was a super human who had the ability to heal faster than normal; May did not. She had maybe half the chance at surviving this horrible circumstance that the reporters kept labeling as "an accident". It was bullshit. A giant fireball resulting from an explosion doesn't just happen by pure chance. Not unless this was suddenly Final Destination and they were all being hunted by death itself.

"Boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. called to his attention. "There is a body buried directly beneath you."

Another dead civilian. Tony really hated today.

He lowered himself until he was hovering just above the mixed debris of cement and plaster. F.R.I.D.A.Y. pinpointed the loose fragments first and he pulled away at them. He stopped when he noticed the body (a woman) wearing a tan tank top. A familiar piece of clothing he noticed when he first met May Parker.

"Fuck," Tony whispered. Maybe he was mistaken. It's a common article of clothing. What were the chances it was actually her?

He pulled away, revealing more of the damaged body. Cuts and bruises decorated her. Blood flowed out of punctured areas like a stream. The only place he hadn't unearthed was her head where a large cement block lay. He was afraid to move it.

Shaken hands moved to grasp the block. He slowly pulled back. The horrible sound of flesh tearing stopped his action immediately. He kept his hold still, unsure of what to do. F.R.I.D.A.Y. already said that she was dead, but he didn't want to rip her face off. Carefully, he placed the block back down in its place.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y.," he gasped out. "Can you identify the body?" He could only keep his gaze upon her as he waited for his AI to respond. He hoped; he prayed that it wasn't May. Please, God. Please.

"I'm sorry, boss," her voice was soft and comforting. He knew right then. "It is May Parker."

A small gasp left his lips. He's completely speechless. He cannot even find the will to curse aloud. If not for the suit, he'd lose his balance. He cursed himself, his timing; he cursed whoever it was that caused this unfortunate event. He stood above her body, tears streaming down his face. He tried to remember her laugh, her smile, anything but that damn cinderblock that glued itself to her beautiful face.

He barely heard when F.R.I.D.A.Y. called out to him, informing of another body not fifty feet from him. The only thing that got him going was when she said, "There are signs of life."

Tony apologized to May's body before he walked off. He promised to be back for her.

He closed in on the location on his screen and scanned for loose rubble. This civilian was alive and he needed to be extra careful. He caught sight of a bloody hand sticking up out of the cluster of cement and metal; pointer digit bent backwards. He looked away from the exposed hand, trying to focus on the person underneath.

"Okay, F.R.I.D.A.Y.," he eyed the giant slab of cement in front of him. "Will there be any fatal damage if I get this off of them?"

"No," F.R.I.D.A.Y. responded. "You're all clear, boss."

"And you said this person is alive?" he asked for clarity's sake.

"Yes, but barely. Be extra careful when you pull him out."

"Him, okay," Tony wasn't sure why knowing the gender soothed him. Perhaps because it made him feel better that he was saving a human being who was clinging onto life with everything they have. "He should only have some broken bones, that's not too hard to deal with."

"Boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. interjected immediately. "There are two obstacles constraining him in place."

"Obstacles? Ah, Hell," Tony leaned down and secured the slab at two opposite angles so that he could remove it without the threat of it breaking in two and crushing the victim. He cursed lifting the slab; it was heavier than he thought, even in the suit. Turning his body fully, he slammed it on the ground behind him, and got a good look at the underside which was painted red. "God, that is a lot of blood."

Tony swiveled back around to get a good look at what he was dealing with and he wish that he hadn't. There lay Peter Parker cushioned in the rubble. His collarbone jutted out of his skin, and was bleeding badly. His legs were crushed by the rubble. So much so that Tony thought he might be paralyzed from the waist down. What gutted him most was seeing two large rebar rods erecting at two different points in Peter's torso. None seemed to have hit his heart, but one looked like it came out of his stomach at an angle, and the other stuck out of his right chest. Where his heart could have been.

"Oh, fuck," Tony gasped aloud. He felt his stomach retch at the sight of him. "You poor kid. You poor fucking kid."

Tony had to step back. His mask immediately pulled up as he bent down dry heaving. F.R.I.D.A.Y. mentioned something about his heart beat increasing but he could barely hear her. Naturally, he started in on his breathing exercises. He picked himself up, and shut his mask back down.

"Boss, your vitals are all over the chart," F.R.I.D.A.Y. told him. "It is recommended to flag down the EMTs to your location."

"No," he almost yelled. "No, I have to do this. I need to save him."

"Removing the rebar yourself could prove fatal to Peter," she said to him softly. "The EMTs have the tools provided to safely remove him from the scene without immediately killing him."

She was right, and Tony knew it. He just didn't' want to feel (or be) useless to Peter. He wanted to be there for him. More than he ever was for anyone. He felt a huge strain of regret. Regret for treating Peter like he was just an experiment for his new team; regret for placing blame for the ferry incident all upon his shoulders when he knew that he was the one who should have communicated better; regret for tossing the boy aside like an old, broken toy when he didn't do what he was told.

Peter looked up to Tony. He had genuine interest in his life, his work, his everything. Tony only pushed him away and refused to let him in any further. He thought of Peter as nothing more than a means to an end; less than human. That's where he fucked up and he knew it. Now, Tony has the chance to make up his past mistakes.

After making the same promise to Peter to come back for him, he flew over to the EMT's location, and informed him of the two bodies he found. Immediately a small team was dispatched to the area with two stretchers in hand.

Two of the responders went to where May lay, and had about the same reaction that Tony did when he found her. He focused more on the team that were taking care of Peter. One responder held a recipro saw and listened to the leader give instructions. Said leader glanced up to Tony, and waved for him to come down.

"Iron Man, we could use your help," the man stated.

"Anything," Tony responded immediately. "What do you need me to do?"

The plan was to dig under Peter, and the EMT with the saw would crawl under to access the rods from the underside. When they got close to an opening, Tony would step in to hold Peter in place, so that his body wouldn't slide on the rods causing more damage. After Peter was cut free, Tony was to take hold of him temporarily. They'd figure it out as they went, the EMT leader, who introduced himself as Mark, assured him that everything would be fine, and that saving Peter was their top priority. Content with the explanation, Tony got into position, and waited as two responders dug, and pulled at the rubble.

Minutes passed and one of the diggers looked up at the leader, "We've located the rebar underneath. We're ready to proceed with step two."

Mark walked over to examine the opening, then asked the saw-wielder, "Step two ready to proceed when you are."

The EMT only nodded as he bent down and crawled under Peter's body. Tony held an unfaltering pose. Peter's neck rested on Tony's left forearm, and his waist was supported by the right arm. He heard muffling from underneath, but could not make it out. He saw Mark nod, and right after a sharp noise filled the area. The sawing began, and Tony swears that he has never been so nervous before this moment.

Peter's body shook in his grasp, which made Tony's stomach drop. The EMT leader approached him and assured him that it was normal, and that he was alright. The man must have heard Tony gasp aloud, or must have realized that he had never been in this sort of predicament. He was right.

The crying of the saw died down, and the EMT who went under scooted back upward. He gave a thumbs up to Mark, who then turned to Tony. "Okay, Iron Man. Very slowly, stand up, and try not to move your arms too much if possible."

Tony obeyed his orders and slowly rose up from his squatting position (which in hindsight must have looked funny to the responders). His arms or stance never faltered. His eyes never leaving the rods that rested inside of Peter; watching for the slightest bit of movement. None came, thankfully.

The lead EMT lead him down the small mountain of rubble, and he took into consideration every step he took. F.R.I.D.A.Y. mapped out a pathway for him on his screen which helped immensely. The leader stayed in front of him, walking backwards slowly as a precaution, and Tony appreciated that. They made it to the stretcher that was set for Peter. Mark walked to the other side and told Tony to gently lift Peter so that the bars did not touch the bed.

"As you place him down," he stared Tony dead in the eyes with all seriousness. "Slowly turn his body so that he'll end up lying on his side."

"Okay," Tony's voice shook nervously.

"Don't worry, Iron Man," Mark assured with a smile. "I'm here to guide you."

With guidance from him, and confidence on Tony's end, they successfully transfered Peter from his arms down safely on the stretcher. The EMT then pulled straps over his body to prevent him from shifting during the trip to the hospital.

"What hospital is he going to?" Tony asked.

"Flushing," he answered before shutting the doors to the back of the ambulance. He tapped them twice to let the driver know that he was good to go.

Tony thanked Mark and let him go back to work. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., what's the status on the last two civilians?"

"Both are alive, and are in the process of being rescued."

"No extensive injuries?"

"It would seem the EMTs have it under control, boss."

"Good," Tony got a safe distance away from the building before taking off into the air. "Call Pepper. I need to tell her what's going on."

"Right away, sir."

His screen lit up with her picture (a new one showing off the ring he gave her) and he waited for her to pick up as he flew to the hospital.