I feel like every time I turn around the world is in trouble.
It's been two years since Hydra tried (and almost succeeded) to take over the world. Since then the world has been in a healing state, and that means it was incredibly vulnerable, and the Avengers have been really, really busy.
A few months ago a new villain popped up, he calls himself Dr. Doom, the Fantastic Four have this whole story about how he came to be, but I could care less, he could have gotten his powers from a fluffy bunny for all I care. He posed a pretty big threat, but we had him under control. Well, at least, we did, before he captured some of my team, which, for the record, is not ok. Now our 'pretty big' threat is a 'massive' threat. He has Grace, Bucky, and Apollo, which is a very big problem for us.
The problem started last week when I sent the three of them out to take care of Doom's latest scheme. It was supposed to be a simple "take out the henchmen and defuse the bomb" mission, but when they didn't come back, the rest of us all ran out looking. A couple hours later there was this stereotypical bad guy ransom video airing on all of the television channels in the country, demanding that we back down and surrender "or else." Now, normally rescuing them would be no big deal, but we have absolutely no idea where they are. So Ethan tried to come up with some way to find them. Of course, he did, but I'm convinced it's the craziest idea I've ever heard, and that's where this story begins.
Apparently Uncle Tony had been working on trackers for us before he died, the trackers were in place (that was a painful shot) but they were never actually activated. There were blueprints, but none of us understood them. So my stupid boyfriend came up with the idea to travel to a parallel universe and get the Tony Stark from there to help us out here.
Now, I didn't understand why we just can't bring him back from the dead, or maybe time travel? I actually asked him that one, he said I was crazy. (Yeah, I'm crazy.) But apparently if we time traveled, we would reveal that he was dead, that could change the future, and Hydra could've ended the world. Which is definitely bad. Now, I think raising the dead sounds a lot saner then inter-dimensional travel, but since we were no closer to finding my brother and the others then we were when they were first captured, I didn't have much else to lose.
So for lack of a better option, I stood in his lab inspecting a weird, freakish contraption, and I couldn't control the words that come out of my mouth when I saw it, "It looks like a death trap."
"It's not." Ethan replied, without looking up from his work.
"Well, it looks like one." I take a good look at him as he runs around, fixing things and tweaking wires. He looked like he hadn't slept in days, and, come to think of it, I don't think he had… not that I'm one to talk.
"But it's not." Ethan said, making brief eye contact with me before he went back to running around.
I sighed and glanced around the lab, Brian was analyzing some data as he played with digital simulations as Jenna stood off to the side, watching us as she yelled at the media on the phone, "Yes, we are aware, no that doesn't change anything!" Sam, Jessie, and Sarah were on a mission with Uncle Bucky, trying to find Doom and the others.
I looked back at Ethan and rolled my eyes, "Ok fine. But we are gonna test it first, right? I'm not getting in there without knowing it's not going to explode."
"Yes, we're testing it now." He walked up and kissed me on the forehead, "and you're not going."
I looked at him with shock, "You are not going to a parallel universe alone. You can hardly handle being in this universe alone. I'm going with you."
"You aren't…" he started, and I glared at him, "Fine, you can come."
"That's cute," I laughed and kissed him on the cheek, "you thought you had a choice!"
He looked at me and opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but then thought better of it. "Ethan." Brian said, "It's ready." He looked away from me and over to Brian as Jenna made a stupid excuse and hung up on the press.
"Awesome!" Ethan exclaimed, as he ran over to his machine, "Jenna, get me an Apple."
Following him, I raised an eyebrow at his request, "An apple?"
"Yeah." Ethan said, as he turned and smiled at me, "Scientists in the movies always test their crazy inventions out on Apples."
I shook my head with a small grin, "Since when is this a movie?"
"It's not, but the apple makes it fun!" he replied, catching the apple Jenna threw. He placed it on the pad and slipped an electronic wrist band around it. Jenna powered up the ray as Ethan walked up to me and wrapped an arm around my waist, guiding me a few steps back. Brian tossed us some goggles as Jenna powered up the ray. Ethan took a deep breath and squeezed me tight.
He looked a Brian who started the count down, "In 3, 2, 1…"
Jenna zapped the apple, there was a bright light, and when it faded the apple had disappeared.
"So did it work?" I asked.
"Let's find out." Ethan grinned, "Brian?"
"Here goes nothing…" Brian whispered, he pushed the giant red button on the control panel, the light reappeared and faded again, this time however, there was an apple on the platform. Jenna scooped the apple up and brought it over to a table.
"JARVIS?" she asked.
"Yes Miss. Stark?"
"Analyze this apple please." Jenna commanded.
"The apple is ripe and perfect for eating Miss. Stark."
She rolled her eyes, "And what about its genetics?"
"Completely normal."
Jenna turned and looked at Ethan, "It survived." She said.
"Oh my God!" Ethan yelled. He let go of me and ran over to Jenna, taking the apple from the table, looking it over for himself. He seemed to deem it worthy because he ran up to me and kissed me, then presented me the apple like a child presenting his mom with a drawing. "Artemis look! It worked, it worked, it really worked!"
It was nice to see him so happy, so I gave him a small smile, "Of course it works, you made it."
He gave me a bear hug and whispered in my ear "I told you I'd do anything it takes to get them back."
"You never let me down." I whisper back, kissing his cheek as we parted.
"Get a room!" Jenna yelled, rolling her eyes. Ethan walked over to her, and pulled on her ponytail as he started typing things on the computer.
"Well Artie," he said, looking at me, "You wanna wear your suit, or change first?"
"Now? You mean because nothing happened to the apple it's perfectly safe for us to go?" I asked, a bit shocked.
"Well, you don't have to go." Ethan mocked with a smirk.
I sighed, "I'll go change, but I'm still bringing my bow."
When I came back to the lab after changing, I saw Ethan standing there, talking to Jenna. He had his portable Iron Man backpack on and was holding a document container.
"Artemis." Brian said, "Come put this on." He handed me an electronic wrist band, like the one they put on the apple. I noticed Ethan was also wearing one.
"What's this?" I asked, twirling it around in my hand.
"That's what brings you home without recreating this machine." Jenna explained.
"Well," I said, strapping it on, "I do want to get back."
Ethan handed me the document container which I strapped on opposite my quiver. "Blueprints?" I asked.
"Blueprints." Ethan smiled.
"You guys ready?" Brian asked.
I took a deep breath, "As I'll ever be."
Ethan hugged me and buried his face in my shoulder, "So brave." He teased.
"Hey!" I yelled and pushed him off.
"Ok, push the button on the bracelet when you want to come back." Jenna explained as we stepped onto the pad.
"I know, I know" Ethan whined, "I made them."
Jenna rolled her eyes and gave him a shove, making him stumble a little, then she gestured at me, "I was talking to her."
I smiled, then looked to the others, "Jenna, you're in charge while I'm gone, don't let anything blow up. Brian, watch Sam and Jess for me, don't let them blow anything up."
Brian sighed, "like that's possible."
"Well, at least try." I winked. Then I turned to Jenna and put on my serious leader face, "Don't tell S.H.I.E.L.D or your mom what we're doing. Don't let the media realize we're gone. Don't stop at anything to get the others back. And if there is any kind of emergency, push that button and bring us back, you understand?"
"Yeah, I do." She said, then she looked at me, "Don't worry, we'll be ok."
I sighed, "I know Jenna, it's just…"
"I know." She smiled, "We'll get them back."
We put our goggles on, and Ethan grabbed my hand. When Brian started counting down I shut my eyes, and squeezed Ethan's had tight. Suddenly, I couldn't hear Brian anymore, then I felt like I was falling, I thought it was a dream, until I hit the ground. Hard.
"Dad! Uncle Bucky!" A girl's voice pierced through the veil of unconsciousness, "People just magically appeared in the living room!"
The sound of heavy footsteps approaching me and Ethan was enough of a problem to warrant me opening my eyes. As I blinked away the tired feeling I took in my surroundings. We appeared to be in the living room of the common area in Avengers tower. Ethan was lying just behind me, still unconscious. The girl I heard earlier was standing in front of me. She had blonde hair pulled into a braid that went down her back. She was wearing a white Captain America T-shirt and short-shorts with no shoes. The alarming footsteps grew closer and I looked up, there was Uncle Bucky, and behind him was Uncle Steve. I immediately jumped into a crouching position, and drew back my bow.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, easy there." Uncle Steve, (or not Uncle Steve, I really wasn't sure…) said.
I kept my arrow aimed at them, because this was the first time I'd seen Uncle Steve since he died (some life I lead huh?) and to be honest, I was totally freaked out. That, and they were in fighting stance, which I didn't blame them for because we just kinda appeared in their living room… but regardless. I nudged Ethan with my foot. Since I had to explain, I knew I would need him, his science, and, most importantly, his suit. I looked at them, then back at Ethan, I gritted my teeth and hissed "Ethan, get up!"
Suddenly I heard footsteps coming from behind us, and a voice I thought I'd never hear again yelled "Don't move!"
I spun around, and my arrow was suddenly face to face with another arrow. I lowered my bow and a tear formed in my eye as I whispered, "Dad?"
His eyes widened and his mouth opened, but he didn't break aim as he replied, "I don't think so kid, I think I'd remember that."
"I know I'd remember." Mom replied, as she aimed a gun at us, putting her other hand on my dad's shoulder.
I blinked the tears out of my eyes, these people weren't my family, not really, but they were a whole lot like them, and they meant business. I grabbed more arrows from my quiver and drew my bow again, this time with four arrows. I aimed at them, that world's version of our parents. My heart ached as I yelled, "I don't want to hurt you! Please, let us explain." I pivoted a little on my foot, shifting between aiming at Clint and Natasha, and Steve and Bucky. "Please."
"Wait." The girl I had seen earlier said as she came out from behind Steve, "Dad, I think she might be telling the truth."
"Alex, not now." Steve dismissed.
"But Dad, just hear me out!" she argued, hands on her hips.
"Alexandra." Steve warned.
"Dad," she continued, "Don't you think if she wanted to hurt you, she would have done it all ready? I mean, she had that arrow drawn before you could even take a fighting stance, and you don't even have your shield. Maybe we should hear her out!"
Steve glanced at Bucky, he shrugged, "Alex, we can't just trust everyone."
I nudged Ethan with my foot again, but he still didn't stir, I was starting to get worried. I looked at Steve, "She's right, I don't wanna hurt you. Really."
"Then lower the weapon." Bucky commanded.
"Only if you promise not to hurt us." I say, my voice wavered a bit, but hey, this wasn't exactly something I had ever trained for.
"Promise." Natasha snapped, coldly.
I lowered my bow and put the arrows back in my quiver. Clint and Natasha lowered their weapons as well and everyone backed down. They were all tense and I knew if I made one wrong move, we were done for. I lowered myself to my knees and crawled over to Ethan, gently placing his head on my lap as I sat on the floor. I felt the others staring at me as I inspected him for injuries, there was a bump on his head. I figured he probably hit it, but it didn't seem too serious. I ran a hand through his hair and whispered, "Ethan, E, you got to get up now. We're kinda in trouble… again… and I'm not sure how to explain this."
"Well, you better figure it out." Clint said.
"You have five minutes." Natasha added, tapping her gun.
I looked up, vaguely aware someone else was walking in. The only one who looked slightly interested in my story was that Alex girl, Steve's daughter, (which was really weird by the way.) "What's the point," I sighed, "none of you will believe me anyway."
"Try us." Another familiar voice joined in.
I looked up and saw none other than Tony Stark, "I wouldn't know where to begin." I scoffed.
He glared at me, "How 'bout you start with a name," then glanced at Ethan, "or two."
I sighed, "I'm Artemis, and this is Ethan."
"Good, good. Now tell me," he said, his glare piercing through my soul, "How did you get into my Tower?"
I looked back down at Ethan, shaking him a bit, "Ethan, they want to know how we got in here…" still nothing, "wake up… come on. Ethan I swear to God, if you don't wake up right now I'll never kiss you again."
He finally began to stir whining, "Noooo."
"Then wake the hell up and explain to these people how we got here before they kill us with sharp pointy things, or bullets, or fists!" I hissed, eager for him to use his big brain.
His eyes fluttered open, "Dad?" he whispered, seeing Tony, he glanced up at me, "Artemis, are we dead?"
"Dad?" Tony yelled, "There is no way I'm your…" he trailed off, clearly thinking of his one night stands, "JARVIS?"
"Yes Mr. Stark."
"Is he my kid?" Tony asked, nervously.
A few seconds passed as JARVIS ran a scan, "Indeed Mr. Stark." Came the reply.
Tony gulped, "Who's the mother?"
"Mrs. Stark sir."
Tony's face went from embarrassment to a mixture of confusion and shock, "What?"
"Mrs. Stark is the mother sir."
"There's no way, I would remember that. I only have three kids JARVIS." Tony rambled.
I heard a gun click, "I want an answer. Now!" Natasha shouted, pointing her gun at Ethan's head.
"Well," Ethan began as I helped him sit up, leaning him against me, "My name is Ethan James Stark. I uh, don't come from this universe but rather, a parallel one. I um, invented this machine to bring us here, because we, uh, kinda need your help."
Natasha immediately raised the gun from his face to mine, "Then who the hell are you?"
"I'm Artemis Barton." I replied, "Where we come from, I'm your daughter."
"JARVIS?" Clint asked, his voice was worried.
"Her DNA is compatible to both you and Ms. Romanoff, Mr. Barton."
"Oh my God." Clint whispered as Natasha lowered her gun, looking at Tony for an explanation.
"Where is this machine?" Tony questioned.
"Home." Ethan explained, "But these wrist bands," he pointed to his wrist, "Have buttons on them that will signal my sister and friend so they can send us back."
"Hang on." Alex interrupted, "Why are you even here? Why didn't you just ask your Dad to help you?"
"Well…" Ethan mumbled.
I spoke up, "Where we come from… you guys are all…" my voice fell to a whisper as I finished, "dead."
"Dead?" Bucky yelled.
"Not you Mr. Barnes, just the Avengers." Ethan said standing up. He brushed himself off and extended a hand to me before he answered the unspoken question, "Two years now."
Clint looked at me, and his eyes went wide, "That's why you lowered your bow, that's why you were so upset when you saw me. To you I'm…"
I gave him a sad smile, "Yeah. Sorry."
"How old were you?" Natasha asked, she seemed unsettled, which was an emotion, so definitely unusual for her.
"I was 16." I replied.
Clint put an arm around her, I heard her whisper, "Just two years older than Kylie."
Tony cleared his throat, "So, you said you needed my help."
Ethan turned to look at him, "Yeah. You see, before he died, my Dad put these tracker chips in us. You know, in case of emergency. He never had a chance to build the thing that activated them and I just can't decipher his blueprints. He was writing all over the place, and his writing is so messy, no offence…"
"None taken." Tony replied.
"And then Uncle Bruce's writing is basically indecipherable. I got some of it, and I'm sure if I had more time I would be able to decipher it all, but we really need those things activated." Ethan explained.
"What's the rush?" Steve asked, intrigued. He had his arm around his daughter. I noticed how tightly he held her and guessed she must have been about 16. She looked rather shaken, I couldn't blame her.
"Well some of…" Ethan started.
"No." I interrupted, "I'm the one who screwed up, I'll tell them."
"You didn't screw up." Ethan sighed, it wasn't the first time we had that discussion.
"I was in charge, so it was on me." I replied.
"We were set up, it was a trap." Ethan said, putting a hand on my arm.
"That I let them walk into." I whispered, shaking his hand off my arm. I didn't deserve the comfort.
"What are you guys going on about?" Tony groaned.
I took a deep breath, "In our world, us kids became the Avengers when our parents died. Six days ago I sent my brother and two of our friends out on a mission. They were just supposed to disable a bomb, maybe knock in the teeth of a henchman or two, but they were taken by surprise and captured. A few hours later this crazy villain, Dr. Doom, went on national TV and ordered our surrender within seven days. They were in the background, tied up." I heard the anger creep into my voice, but honestly, I didn't care, "He hurt them, hurt my brother, and Bucky, and Grace. We tried everything to find them, but…" my voice hitched, "but we just can't!" I felt a hand on my back, it was familiar, but definitely not Ethan's. I spun around to see Clint, trying to comfort me. I tilted my head, ignoring the tears that had begun to form, "What are you doing?"
"I may not know you," Clint said softly, "I may not understand how you exist or how you got here, but I do know that in some world, some other me loved you as much as I love my daughter, and that is enough for me to want to take care of you." The tears began flowing down my face as I looked at him. Before I knew it, he had pulled me into a hug. I felt another hand begin to stroke my hair. It was a slender hand, one that could only belong to mom. I smiled, knowing that even though our parents are gone, they always seem to find a way to show how much they love us.
I took a deep, steading breath and pulled away, "Thank you." I whispered.
They smiled at me, I could tell they wanted to go to their own child, (or children, I wasn't really sure.)
Steve walked over to me and put a hand on my shoulder and smiled, "I'm sure that whatever you did, you did it with the best intentions. I bet Tony would gladly help you get those trackers online so the two of you can find your friends." He looked over to Tony, who nodded.
I handed Tony the blueprints, "Hmmm," he said, studying them, "I think I may know what I was thinking. Come with me to my lab and we'll see what I can do."
When we got to the lab I noticed the various inventions that littered the place. Most were the childish, whimsical gadgets Uncle Tony used to love, what surprised me though, was how many were pink.
"Jacob, Bella, I have a new project for us." Tony announced, wiping all the stuff from his drafting table onto the floor. He spread out Ethan's blueprints as two younger children came over to inspect them, and us. The boy, Jacob, looked about 13 or so, he had strawberry-blonde hair like Aunt Pepper and a curious look on his face that matched Uncle Tony perfectly. The girl, Bella, looked about 7. She had short brown hair, freckles, and was missing one of her front teeth. The look on her face mirrored her brother's as she inspected Ethan and me. "Brucie!" Tony yelled, diverting the children's attention from us, "You are never going to believe who these two are." He glanced upwards, "JARVIS, send Dylan and Zack down here please, we're going to need all the help we can get."
After Tony debriefed Dylan, his oldest child, Bruce and his son Zack, the team of super scientists, including Ethan, got to work deciphering the blueprints and building the activation thingy. I sat out of the way, watching them work. I noticed Alex Rogers coming up and sitting next to me. I looked at her, she looked down at her hands, twiddling her thumbs, "You need something?"
"No." she replied, "No, I… well… can I ask you a question?"
I chuckled softly, "Ask away."
"Is it hard?" She asked, her wide eyes looking up at me.
I tilted my head a bit, confused, "Is what hard?"
Alex looked back down at her hands, "Leading a team, is it hard?"
I lean back and sigh, "Depends on the day."
She returned her gaze to me, "What do you mean?"
"Well," I chuckle again, "today I traveled into a parallel universe as a last ditch effort to save my brother and two of my best friends, who were only captured because they were sent in on my order. It might not be my fault but, sometimes it feels that way."
"Oh." Alex said in a defeated voice, eyes once again returning to her hands.
I smile, "It's not usually that bad though. When we come out of a battle on top, uninjured, there is this warm and fuzzy feeling in my stomach. You feel like you're on top of the world, nothing can break you down. The problem is that when you stay on top too long, you lose your balance. But I always seem to climb back up. It's like a roller-coaster. Sometimes you question yourself, "Why did I do this?" "What was I thinking?" but at the end of the day, it's really, truly fun. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
Alex looked at me and smiled hopefully, "Really?"
I nod, "You gonna lead your own team someday?"
She nodded, taking a deep breath, "Kinda, co-lead actually, me and Dylan. I don't really know how to feel about it. Dylan wants to run it like a business, but I'm not sure. He thinks there's a plan for everything, me, not so much."
"Well," I said, "There is not a plan for everything, I can guarantee that, I mean, just look at me. That was never part of a plan until about three hours ago when we showed up. But it also doesn't hurt to have plans, just in case. You just need to balance it out. You don't let him get too caught up in plans, and make sure he doesn't let you run head into things. I'm sure you two will be great."
"You really think so?" she asked with wide eyes.
I smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I think so. Just be careful, know your team's strengths and weaknesses, me brave, bold, and cautious. You'll be just fine. Trust me."
Alex grinned at me, and I realized how nervous she was. On the brink of having to lead the people closest to you into battle, not sure whether or not it's want you really want to do. I had been there, oh how I had been there. I looked at her, "You know, if you ever need help, you can just ask your dad. My Uncle Steve was my mentor, he helped me become the leader I am today. I'm sure your dad would love to help you."
Alex grinned, "Yeah, he can be a bit protective though."
"Which is why he'll help you. He wouldn't want you or any of your friends in danger." I say, "Your father is one of the greatest leaders of all time, he'll want you to be the same. That is, of course, if that's what you want to be. Can I give you some advice?"
"Of course!" she gasped.
I smile at her eagerness, "Never be afraid to ask for help. You have a lot of people who love you, let them help if you need it. It could be more important than you know."
"I think we can handle that." Alex said with admiration in her eyes.
I grinned at her, "Good."
Our conversation was interrupted by Ethan running up, "Artemis!" he yelled, looking more excited than I had seen him in days.
I chuckled and rolled my eyes, "What'd you break now?"
He opened his mouth fir a second then stammered, "What… no, I… no! It's done! We got it!"
I jumped up, "Really?"
"Yeah!" he exclaimed, grabbing my arms, "All we have to do now is go home and hook it up!"
I grinned, looking up at him, "So, we can find them?"
"I promised, didn't I?" he answered, placing a soft kiss on my forehead.
I heard Alex squeal from behind me, "Oooo! You two are like, a thing!"
I looked up at Ethan who was grinning sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. I laughed softly, and turned to look at her. "Yep, sure are."
"Oh my God! Wait till I tell Tyra!" she yelled, Ethan and I raised out eyebrows, and her eyes lit up in shock, "Oh! Right, you don't know her. Tyra's my best friend! She's Thor's daughter. She loves romantic stuff! She thinks that me and Dylan should be a couple, I think she's crazy but she's convinced that…" Alex took a deep breath, "I should really stop talking huh?"
Ethan laughed, "Maybe just a little."
"Sorry!" she apologized, "I just get excited sometimes. And you two are so cute!"
"Alex." Tony said, as he walked up behind us, "If you're done here, I think these two need to be getting home."
"Oh!" Alex gasped, "Oh gosh, I didn't even realize!"
Dylan walked up behind her, "You never do."
She gasped, hitting him in the stomach, "Not true!"
He raised his eyebrows, "Yeah? Since when?"
"Since forever Alex." Dylan said with an eye roll. He put a hand on her back, pushing her towards the door, "Now come on, let's let them get home." He looked behind him, "Jacob, Bella, come on!"
"No!" Jacob whined, "I want to watch this!"
Tony sighed, "Jacob, listen to your brother."
"But Dad!" Jacob protested, Tony just sighed, gesturing for his son to go. The boy left in a huff, his sister following close behind.
"Try and come back to visit sometime!" I heard Alex yell as Dylan pushed her out the door behind them.
"Zack, you too." Bruce added. The boy simply stood up and walked out, as if he was expecting the order to come. He didn't seem too happy about it though.
Tony came up in front of us and put a hand on each of our shoulders. "You know," he started, "the two of you have certainly made a splash around here in the last couple hours. You have certainly changed my perspective on many, many things."
"Well," I said, "if it helps, this was a surprise for me too."
He smiled and gave a small chuckle, "I can only imagine. But you haven't only changed my perspective on the universe, but also on myself, I'm not as invincible as I like to believe…"
"No!" I gasped, "Don't ever think like that!"
"Yeah," Ethan agreed, "What happened to our parents hasn't happened here. We are both in the same year, the differences between our worlds is huge, don't let our universe change how you think. Just be extra careful with Hydra."
"You know, you are pretty good kids." Tony smiled, "I'm sure your parents would be proud."
Ethan hugged Tony tight, "Thanks," he whispered, "You have no idea how much that means to me."
I put a hand on Ethan's back and he let go of Tony. Bruce handed Ethan a box that had our new gadget in it and I rolled the blueprints up and returned them to their case.
We stepped away from Bruce and Tony, "This better work." I whispered.
"It's gonna work." He whispered back.
"Fine." I muttered, "But we better not fall unconscious this time."
"Pft." Ethan huffed, "We won't fall unconscious… I hope."
"You hope?" I yell, astonished, "What do you mean by that?"
"Bye Tony! Thanks for all your help!" Ethan waved, grabbing my wrist and pushing the button.
"Whoa, whoa, Ethan wait a second!" I screamed. Suddenly the bright light overwhelmed the room and I felt like I was falling again, though that time I knew I really was. I bent my knees a bit, trying to soften my landing. It must have worked because I landed on my feet, Ethan, however, was not as lucky, he landed flat on his back.
Ethan lifted his head from the floor, whining, "Ow."
"Don't be such a baby" I mocked, gabbing the box from his hands, "Brian, catch!" he caught it and opened it.
"What's this?" he asked, taking the tech out as I pulled Ethan to his feet.
"That," Ethan said, walking over, "is everything we need to activate the trackers."
Brian looked at Ethan and smiled, "Awesome."
I looked around, "Hey Bri, where's Jenna?"
"Oh," he said, "she's in command central. Doom's been causing trouble everywhere. The others are out trying to take out the 'Doom-bots' running all over Manhattan."
Ethan looked up from his tinkering with a thoughtful look on his face, "Why is it always Manhattan?"
Brian and I turned to look at him, "Hm," I said, "I really don't know. We have more important things to worry about now, but we should definitely get back to that later."
Brian nodded in agreement, and the boys turned back to their work as I went over to the elevator.
"Hey Jenna!" I said, as the elevator doors opened.
"Oh my gosh!" She yelled, "You're back! Thank God!"
"I didn't know you'd miss me so much." I smirked.
"I didn't," she huffed, arms crossed, "I'm just sick of leading your team."
I laugh, "Allrighty, show me what's up and I'll see what I can do."
About an hour later I felt a slight jolt in my arm.
"Ow!" Jenna whined, clutching her own arm "What the heck was that!"
I opened my mouth to reply, but the elevator dinged before I had the chance, "I have a feeling we're about to find out."
"Artie! Jenna!" Ethan yelled, running out of the elevator with Brian close behind, "It's working, I know where they are!"
I jumped up and ran over to him, "Where are they? Let me see!"
He pulled out his phone and showed me a map with colored dots on it. "There right here," he said, pointing at a cluster of dots, "I looked it up online and it's a warehouse in Brooklyn."
I hugged Ethan as tightly as I could, "Thank you so much." I whispered into his ear.
I felt his arms tighten around me as he whispered back, "Told'ja we would find them."
"I never doubted you." I smiled.
"Ew." Jenna complained, "You two really need to stop."
Brian chuckled, "I'm just glad they don't butterfly kiss like Apollo and Grace.
Jenna looked up, "Good Point." She walked up and stood between Ethan and me, putting her arms around our necks, "I love you guys. Please never be as disgusting as them."
"I don't know…" Ethan teased, putting his sister in a headlock.
"Uh guys," I said, "I don't mean to interrupt your moment, but we should go, like, now."
Ethan and Jenna both jumped up, "Right!" Ethan yelled, heading to the elevator and repeatedly pushing the 'down' button, "I'll get my suit and meet you guys outside!"
As Ethan went down in the elevator I turned to Brian, "You coming?"
He smiled, "Bucky is my best friend. And the others are like my family. I wouldn't miss this for anything."
"Meet you downstairs." I grinned, "Some of us have actual uniforms to wear!" Brian rolled his eyes and went into the elevator. I grabbed the mic and turned it on, "Sarah can you hear me?"
My ear piece buzzed, "I read you loud and clear."
"Brian, Ethan and I are headed to 700 Columbia Street in Brooklyn to get Apollo, Grace and Bucky back. Rendezvous with us there as soon as you can." I ordered.
"Roger that Artemis." Came the reply, "Let's bring them home."
As we arrived at the warehouse, Ethan set Brian and me down on the ground. "So," Ethan said, "what's the plan Artie?"
I snapped into leader mode right away, "Brian, create a diversion. Ethan and I will wait on the roof until there's an opening. Ethan, once we get in there I want you to drop me somewhere high and disable those stupid bots. Brian, keep the entryway clear for when our reinforcements get here. I'll get the others. Call if there's any problems. Understood?"
"Got'cha." Ethan winked.
I looked to Brian, "You good?"
He sighed, "Yeah, I suppose. You guys better get in position, the big guy can get a little obvious."
"Right." I said, "Be careful Bri, I mean it."
"I will." He smiled, "Don't worry, the big guy won't let anything happen to me."
Ethan wrapped an arm around me, "Better clench up Merida." He teased.
"Ha. Ha." I mocked as we took off, safely landing on the roof. As soon as we were hidden away, Titan appeared, and all the Doom-bots rushed to attack, giving us a perfect opening as we slipped in through a hole Ethan lasered in the ceiling.
He lowered me onto a giant support beam, and lifted his face mask, kissing me on the cheek, "Be careful." He whispered.
I smiled softly, grabbing him by the shoulders, kissing him on the lips, "You too."
He grinned ear to ear before closing his mask again, flying off to the tech center. I took aim at the doom bots surrounding the cages in the center of the room. I reached for some arrows, and suddenly realized that my quiver was now contained several trick arrows, complete with tiny 'Stark Industries' logos on each of them. I smiled, realizing that Ethan must have made them with Tony when we were on our little trip. Then I pulled one out and shot it through two robots and into another, making them all explode in the process. I smirked, realizing how fun it was going to be.
After shooting all the initial doom bots down, I shot a grappling hook arrow and slid down to the floor. I ran up to the cages and immediately assessed the situation. Apollo was on the floor his, unconscious. Bucky was sitting in his and Grace was standing, hands grabbing the bars. I ran up to her, grabbing the bars as well, "Gracie! Oh my God! Please tell me you're ok! And what happened to my brother?"
"I'm fine," she answered, "They electrocuted him a few times. I don't know what else, they always took him to the back to do… whatever it was they did." I took my gun out of the holster and shot the lock on her cage, then Bucky's. Grace summoned her hammer, and they looked at me. "Grace, go with Bucky to find his shield, reinforcements are on the way." I shot of the lock to Apollo's cage and tossed Bucky my gun, "I'll get my brother."
Bucky ran off towards the back. Grace's gaze lingered on me as I pulled my brother out of the cage and onto my lap. I turned and smiled reassuringly at her and she turned on a heel and ran after Bucky. I leaned my brother up against my chest and drew my bow, firing at the second, or maybe third, wave of Doom-bots.
Suddenly Sarah came flying through the door, Sam and Jessie running close behind her. They gasped when they saw me holding Apollo and ran up to us. "What can we do? Sarah asked.
"Well," I said, "Sarah, go back up Titan. Jessie, go help Bucky and Grace find his shield, they went towards the back. Sam, help me get my brother out of here, then you and me will go kick some robot ass."
They all nodded in agreement and went off in different directions. With Sam's help I was able to get Apollo out of the stupid warehouse and on to a waiting S.H.I.E.L.D med jet. Just then my comm buzzed. "Yes?" I asked.
"Artemis," Jessie reported, "We got Bucky's shield. What's your plan now?"
"Ethan how far are you with those bots?" I asked.
"Well I got the schematics," Ethan answered, "But I'm not quite sure how to shut them down."
"Close enough." I said, "Everyone meet back at the med ship for extraction in 5. Sarah, you get Brian."
I heard Sarah sigh, "Why do I have to get Brian?"
"Because I said so." I groan, "Besides your closest."
"Fine." She grumbled.
"And that," I finish, "Is what I did while you were gone."
Apollo looks at me like I'm insane, "Yeah, I'm supposed to believe that you went to a parallel universe while I was being held against my will."
I nod, "What? You think I could make that up? Just ask Ethan, It's all 100% true."
He leaned back against the pillows on his bed and sighed. My expression softened, "What's wrong?"
"It's silly." He muttered, turning away from me.
I got out of my chair and sat on the bed next to him, "What's silly?"
"It's just, you got to see mom and dad again." He admitted to the wall, "I always wanted to do that… there's so much, so much I have to say."
"Oh Apollo." I sigh, "I didn't really see mom and dad, it was more like I saw two people that looked like mom and dad. But they didn't know me, didn't know us. Heck, they even had another daughter! Besides, whatever it is you have to say to them, they already know. There with us all the time Apollo, even if you don't realize it."
He turned and faced me, "You really think so?"
"I know so." I smile. I got up and started for the door, "Get some rest now bro, you need it."
"Fine." he groaned, siding down in his bed, "And Artemis?"
I poke my head back through the door, "Yeah?"
He smiles at me, "Thanks."
"Don't mention it," I say as I close the door.
I walk down into the lab where Ethan is working, intent on dragging him to bed before I turn in myself. I lean in the doorway, "Quite the day huh?"
"No kidding." Ethan scoffed, he was dismantling his parallel dimension thing.
"Don't like it anymore?" I ask.
"Nah, not that." He said, looking at me, "It's just, could you imagine what would happen if it fell into the wrong hands?"
I think about it for a second, "No, I can't say I've thought about it. But now that I am, I see why that's a good idea."
"Besides," Ethan said walking over to me and pulling me into a hug, laying his head on my shoulder, "There's so many things we don't understand about the universes yet. I mean what if there's more than two. I mean there is no guarantee that if we went through again we'd end up in the same parallel world. I mean, we could end up in a universe where Hydra took over, or the Avengers were evil or…"
I pulled away from him and grabbed his face, "Hey, let's not worry about it, you took it apart, it's over now."
"Yeah," Ethan chuckled, "unless of course those kids in the other world try and make one of these."
My eyes widened in shock, "They wouldn't."
"I don't know Artie." Ethan sighed, "They do remind me a lot of younger versions of us."
I groan, "And we would so do that." The two of us slid down the lab wall and I put my head on my shoulder.
"Eh," Ethan said, leaning his head on mine, "We'll get there when they get here, for now, let's just enjoy this victory."
I give a contented sigh, "Good idea."