AN: This is just a little project I decided to work on. The Marvel: Earth-PCE project is nothing more than an experimental fanfiction of how I would shape the Marvel Universe. I dont expect any of this to happen, nor do I want it to happen. Its just a few ideas here and there about a new continuity exclusive to this story. I hope you enjoy. I'm usually not one to explain origin stories like this (Who hasn't seen Peter Parker get bit by a spider?) but I'm gonna put a spin on these origins so what the hell.
Chapter 0: Peter Parker
Amazing, Peter thought. Real life superhumans - in Manhattan!
The year was 2014. Peter Parker sat in his room, motionless as he watched a Vine on his phoneof Johnny Storm, the douchebag brother of Sue Storm, one of Reed Richards, a molecular physicist in New York's, colleagues (both of which happen to be some of young Peter's idols, alongside Tony Stark and Hank Pym.) The six-second video's caption was Man on Fire! I'm the Human Torch, lol! Peter gazed in awe as he watched Johnny Storm, who was probably too stupid to know how to edit a fake of such a feat, create fire from his hands, and toss it around like it was nothing.
Peter had to see for himself. He soon found an article (on Bing, no less) that detailed the whole thing: Four people had gained miraculous abilities almost overnight at the Baxter Building, and the government had taken them all into custody.
"After a space program led by scientists Reed Richards and Susan Storm ended less than three days ago, the aforementioned duo and Johnny Storm, Susan's celebrity younger brother, and Benjamin Grimm, long-time friend of Reed Richards, have all been taken into custody by the FBI after they began exhibiting strange abilities. Just last night, Johnny Storm released a video of him being able to control fire, and Susan Storm seemingly turned near invisible in a staff meeting. Reports say that Richards and Grimm are experiencing similar situations. although the extent of their "powers" is currently unknown."
Peter thought about Johnny's video. Human Torch. The Human Torch was part of a WWII conspiracy. Supposedly, war-hero and national icon Captain America, who was known to be the fabled "perfect soldier," was part of a government program called Operation: Invaders. The Invaders conspiracy is still a very heavy topic, and some say that it is even linked to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. One popular theory was that of an android that could fly using the ability to engulf itself in fire. Whereas Steve Rogers, Captain America, was very real, the existence of a Human Torch, or a "Sub-Mariner" was never proven. The Invaders faded into legend. To this very day, nobody knows what happened to the body of Captain America, who was dubbed MIA near the war's end.
Peter went to bed. He literally sat at his computer in his pajamas at 1:00 in the morning just scanning the internet for more information. That night, he didn't sleep a minute. Not only did his mind race at the thought of four people with strange abilities, but he also had his first day of school in the morning. He was going to be a softmore.
...
7:55 AM
The clock buzzed in Peter's face. By the time he noticed, well, the time, Peter had wasted a minute lying dry-eyed in his bed. The bus arrives at 8:05 every day. He got dressed, brushed his teeth vigorously, ran downstairs, ate breakfast, packed his things and headed out. (He almost didn't remember his damn skateboard.)
Aunt May kissed his cheek. "Have a good first day at school, honey."
"I will Aunt May."
Peter was almost out the door when his Uncle Ben stepped in front of him. "First day of junior year and you think you can just, WALK OUT without giving your Uncle a hug?"
Peter was about to miss the bus. He loved his uncle, but he'd be late soon. "IoversleptIgottagoorI'mgonnabelate."
"Slow down, Peter. You need to relax. It's only your first day. You should chill out, make some friends, meet some girls your age. What about the redhead next door? She's cute. You should ask her on a date.
Peter needed to leave. "I'll do that, Uncle Ben. See you later." He hopped onto the bus and sat in the only empty seat. The bus almost left before the aforementioned redhead walked in and took a spot next to Peter.
"Is this seat taken?"
Peter stared for a moment. God, she was hot. "What? No...! Um, no you can sit here." He hastily moved his things. She sat down, and Peter, after looking in disbelief (Jesus Christ, she was hot) plugged in his earphones.
"I'm Mary-Jane Watson. I, uh, live next door."
"I'm, uh, Peter. Peter Parker. I, uh...also live next door." She laughed and smiled. Peter looked out the window before hitting himself on the head with it. Dumbass. Of course you live next door.
They exchanged very few words before they arrived at school. Peter walked past a bunch of dumbass football players and opened his new locker, which was next to his friend, Angelica Jones'. Uncle Ben never teased Peter about her. She was bisexual. And preferred women. Mostly.
"Morning, Peter Porker."
"Is that a fat joke? I get the feeling it's a fat joke. Those don't work. I'm not fat."
"No, jackass. You have bacon on your shirt." Peter looked in dismay and realized that he had an entire piece of bacon on his shirt during that entire damn bus ride with that hot redhead.
"Dammit." Peter noticed a small camera in Angie's hands. "What's that for?"
"Yearbook."
"I didn't know hipsters did yearbook."
"Not a hipster, Pete. I dressed and acted this way before those existed."
"Soo, you're a hipster before hipsters were cool?"
"Shut it. I'm taking pictures."
"How many pictures even get in the yearbook?"
Angie smiled at this. "Around 2% of the ones we take."
...
Peter sat in his class. Eddie Brock, Peter's longtime best friend, sat next to him. Eddie and Peter's father's worked together before both of them mysteriously disappeared. The two couldn't be closer. "Pete! Did you hear about Johnny Storm setting on fire? He and three other people have got some sort of super powers!" Greg Willis, they're friend, was also there, listening in on the details.
"I saw it, Eddie."
"No way. You had to have been up at like, 2:00 AM. I couldn't catch it, they took it down before I woke up. Do you think it was fake?"
"I did some research. Blaze and the other 3 scientists were arrested."
"HOLY CRAP IT'S REAL! I KNEW IT!" Greg screamed before a voice from across the room make Peter, Greg, and Eddie's neck hair stand up.
"MISTER PARKER! MISTER BROCK! MISTER WILLIS! I WON'T HAVE YOU TALKING NONSENSE IN MY CLASS ON THE FIRST DAY!"
Peter and Eddie said "Yes, ma'am" in unison before begining class.
Peter left school that day with ever growing curiosity on the matter of the four super powered people. He and Eddie had a lengthy discussin about it at lunch, but they still knew pretty much nothing about any of it. Peter went to the subway so he could get downtown, where he worked as an intern for none other than Tony Stark. The genius, billionaire, playboy philantrhopist. He was the owner of Stark Tech, where they made schematics and blueprints for weapons. (Although, Tony Stark had a "war profiteer" image, Peter admired his work in other things. He helped engineer an AI called Jarvis that links into everything he owns. It was like having a butler everywhere in the house, but not having to pay anyone for manual labor.) His father, Howard Stark, built the company on a dream of peace, but times were different now.
Peter stepped to the front desk, where Tony's assistant, Pepper Potts, let him in. He always used the private elevator. Tony's virtual assisstant, Jarvis, an AI created by Stark that linked into all of Tony's technology, greeted him on his way to the penthouse of Stark Tower. "Retinal scan," Jarvis scanned Peter's eye, "confirmation. Access granted. Welcome back, Mister Parker."
"Evening Jarvis." Peter didn't talk much to Jarvis, he never got the chance. But when he did he always got a hint that Jarvis...enjoyed being useful.
"May I interest you in a beverage on your way up, Mister Parker? Will a Cola suffice your thirst?"
"Lemonade's fine, Jarvis." Tony had installed a mechanism that allowed him to get drinks from the penthouse into the elevator. Not a healthy lifestyle, what with his drinking and all, but hey, Peter thought. His tower, not mine. Peter sipped his instant lemonade. Straight from the table coming out of the elevator's wall. "Thank you, Jarvis."
"Always my pleasure to serve, Peter."
Peter stepped out of the elevator and walked into the main room. Tony Stark himself stepped into the room with a magazine and a glass. "Hey! There's my favorite only intern!" He sat down next to Peter on the couch.
"How's it going, Pete? School treating you well?"
"Eh, short day."
"Oh. You asked out that Liz chick yet?"
Peter had talked to Tony about girls before. "Ya, no. Heard she's been-"
"Sleeping around with football players?"
"How'd you know?"
"Lucky guess. Plus, some douchebag named Flash said that on your Twitter. I hacked his account, he'll be locked out of the web for a little bit."
"You didn't have to do that."
"Yes, Peter. I did." Tony walked to the bar to refill his vodka. "Jarvis, hit the jukebox. Play me some tunes. Blue Swede, Hooked On A Feeling." Immediately, music blared from the ceiling. Jarvis interrupted.
"Sir, Pepper would like for you to see what's on the TV. It's urgent."
The TV turned on, revealing a picture of Tony in front of the Baxter building the morning of the accident that transformed the four astronauts.
"Esteemed billionaire scientist Tony Stark was seen leaving the Baxter building on the morning of the launch of the space shuttle. Rumors circulating around the web claim that Stark staged the accident in an attempt to kill Reed Richards, his friend and partner. This was apparently due to an infringement of copyright in a hearing that Tony Stark lost earlier this year."
Tony was outraged by this information. "That doesn't make any goddamn sense, that case was between me and Oscorp. You see this, Peter? People will do anything to make news these days."
"Apparently Richards used much of the technology claimed by Oscorp in the hearing in his experiment and procedure, against Tony Stark's personal wishes."
"Oh, now it all makes sense, doesn't it? You know Peter I can't stand these people. Where are they even getting this?" Tony had a bad reputation ever since he inherited the company. He was basically an arms dealing Robert Downey Junior. Not only did they look alike, but he also had a serious drinking problem, and would often just make a bad name for himself. "Sorry Peter, I can't work on that project with you right now. I need to think. And call my lawyer."
"Alright, I'll take a cab." Peter picked up his things. He noticed the press crowding out side the Stark Tower. They must've gotten her fast.
"No, let Happy take you. He's my bodyguard, he can get you past all those stupid journalists. I bet they got the Daily Bugle out there too."
"Coming back, is Tony Stark also letting teenagers into his personal suite?" Tony and Peter were both awestruck as to what they saw. It was Peter (faced blurred out due to the fact that he was a minor) walking into Stark's building. They were making Tony out to be a pedophile. A man such as Tony Stark having an intern was an outrage in this society. (Peter liked to think of it as a sort of Thomas Edison/Nicola Tesla partnership. Without the drama about not being payed. He was an intern, they agreed on that.)
Peter, Tony, and Pepper, who had just entered to inform Tony that the press were outside, all simultaneously said "What the Hell?"
"Pepper, please get Happy to take Peter home. I'm about to be seriously pissed off."
"Yes, sir."
They left. Tony stared out at the skyline for a few brief moments. He threw a bottle at the window in rage. It didn't break, his windows were magnificent. The press was doing this to him again, and now they had brought poor Peter into it. "I need a drink." He cleaned himself up, put away the blueprints for his and Peter's "Webshooter" project, took a shot of whiskey, put on his suit...and went to face those scumbag reporters.
...
Tony walked into the parking garage. He saw a man which he did not recognize in front of his limo. He was short, maybe 5'9", had a plane black suit, short balding hair. He looked as if he was in his late 40's. He wore a nametag that said read "Rick." Tony was puzzled. He had never seen this man before. Probably just a new driver.
"Where to, Mr. Stark."
"Anywhere but here. I'm getting really tired of this." They drove by the reporters. Tony had the windows tinted, of course. He called to make sure Happy had not been followed on his way to Peter's house. A silence filled the air as Tony poored himself another drink in the backseat. "Rick" had not hopped in the driver's seat. He sat across from Tony in the limo. A large man was driving. Tony couldn't see his face. He and the ever-mysterious Rick sat, glancing at one another. Tony broke the silence. "You want an autograph or something, newbie?"
"Just trying to leave you to your thoughts sir." The news was on in the limo. Tony was about to tell Jarvis to turn it off, when he realized something: he had never asked him to turn it on in the first place. Jarvis never did anything without telling Tony, unless he was otherwise programmed. Tony checked his phone. Jarvis wasn't connected to the limo. Rick couldn't see his phone, so he tried to connect Jarvis. He was overwritten in seconds. Rick wasn't a Stark Industries employee. Neither was the driver, Tony assumed. He had received some threats months earlier. They threatened to kidnap him and torture him, whoever "they" were. Tony tried to send a text message to Happy. He had called him, so he figured a text might work. He wrote: "Peter home yet? I might be in a bind." Once again, he was overwritten. He reached for a handgun he had hidden beneath the seat. He wasn't sure if it was even his limo, but he took the chance anyway. It was. Tony grabbed the gun. Rick pulled his from his jacket. They sat, staring. One wrong move and Tony was dead.
Rick kept a calm face. "This is not a kidnapping, Mr. Stark. We will return you home, shortly." Tony had sweat dripping from his brow. He didn't know what was going on. "I've already taken the liberty of emptying that gun of yours, sir."
Tony's look was stone cold. "Bet you didn't get the one in the chamber."
"You're kidding, right?"
Tony kept the face, but he put the gun on the floor. He held up a bottle of booze. "Want a drink?"
"Mr. Stark, somebody in your company is trying to frame you for the accident."
"You mean Richards? The superhumans? I don't have any-"
"We know. We'll clear that up, the press will be pointing fingers at everyone but you in a few hours. We also know is that whoever tried to frame you is also trying to have you killed."
"Who?" Stark suddenly had a very concerned look.
"We do not know. We...suspect a few people, but the Director has ordered us not to disclose that information yet."
"Why? Somebody wants me dead and you won't say who? A-and who the Hell is the Director? What are you, FBI? CIA?"
"We cannot disclose that information either. Your phone will no longer be able to dial 911. Instead your phone will direct you to my number. We will make sure that whoever is doing this will not get to you first. You will be under constant surveillance, and we will be escorting you on your trip to Afganistan this week."
"Wait, slow down, just tell me what the hell is happening? Where on Earth are you taking me?"
"Back to your home, Mr. Stark. It's not safe in the city, and remember: nobody get's in or out of your home tonight, you understand?"
"What about my assistant, Pepper?"
"She will not be there tonight. We will be monitoring your house from a nondisclosed location approximately seven miles away."
"Who the hell are you? Did you put cameras in my house?"
The man in the suit seemed to be talking faster. He was preparing something in his hand. Tony couldn't tell what it was. He was truly so buzzed he could not see. "My name is classified at this point in time, but you will know me by the alias Rick Jones. You will not disclose any of this information to your friends, loved ones or business partners, do you understand?"
"Yes, but could you tell me who you work for? Who's the Director?"
"I will disclose that information if you sign this pamphlet." Rick handed Stark a piece of paper and a pen. Stark clicked the pen, and a gas came out of it's side and spewed in his face. He blacked out within seconds.
...
"Have a nice evening, Peter." Happy was Tony's bodyguard. On occasion, he would drive Peter back to his house so that Pete wouldn't have to take the train.
Peter walked into his house, and before he could say a word he was squeezed to near death by Aunt May.
"OH MY GOD PETER WE WERE SO WORRIED! WE SAW THE NEWS! YOU CAN NOT GO BACK TO THAT MAN'S BUILDING! IF HE LAYED A FINGER ON YOU I SWEAR TO GOD WE'LL SUE HIM FOR ALL HE'S WORTH! I CAN'T-"
"Slow down, Aunt May! What's the matter?"
"W-w-we saw you on the news! They-the-they were talking about Tony Stark being a pedophile! I-I called you a billion times and I-"
"Aunt May, Tony's not a pedophile! They were making up lies about him on the news!"
"What? Are you sure he didn't touch you?"
"Yes, Aunt May. I would never lie to you."
Aunt May sat down in silence for a long time. Peter sat next to her and hugged her as she burst into tears.
That night, Peter heard a knock on his door. "Come in."
Uncle Ben walked in, said he wanted to talk. "You ok?"
"Uncle Ben, I swear to god, he didn't-"
"I believe you son. I believe you." Ben sat with a stern look on his face. "It's just that...your Aunt was upset, you know? She was so upset when that boy we hired to take care of you did what he did and...she didn't want it to happen all over again."
They sat for a long time. "So I can still work with Tony?"
"Yes, but just wait until he goes on that business trip you were talking about."
"OK." Ben left and Peter sat for a long time. Angie, Eddie, and Greg were opening a Skype chat. They were all thinking the same thing: that they saw Peter on the news. He got on, explained to them what happened, and after everything was settled, they played Left 4 Dead for two hours.
...
Tony woke up in his bed. Jarvis greeted him as if it were any ordinary day. "Good morning, sir. Today it is 85 degrees f-"
"Where is Pepper?"
"Your text message records say you gave her the night off, last night sir."
"Did anybody come in here yesterday? Put camera's in or something? Did somebody hack the mainframe?"
"Not to my knowledge, sir."
Tony fell back into bed in confusion. He had a major headache.
"Sir, I must remind you that you have a flight to Afganistan in two weeks to showcase the Jericho missile to the US military."
Tony disregarded this and went into his basement/workshop. "Jarvis I need you to check my phone for any malware or bugs. Anything wrong with my phone, I want to know about it." He ran toward his gear, where he designed blueprints on a 3D holographic mainframe which he controlled with a glove-like remote control. "Also, run a background check on 'Rick Jones'. See if there are any FBI or CIA agents with that name or something."
"Right away, sir."
Within minutes, Jarvis had claimed to be overwritten by a preprogrammed search filter. A message popped up on Tony's phone. It came from a blocked number.
"Don't do that."
Tony texted back.
"Why? Who the hell is this?"
"The Director."
"Is 'Rick' the Director?"
"No. Don't try to trace this. It won't work, Tony."
"How do I know I can trust you people?"
"Just cooperate. You're part of something bigger, Tony."
"Like what?"
"You're father was part of it before you."
"My father?"
"Do some digging. You might strike gold."
"What should I dig for?"
"You might find it if you search for 'Illuminati.' Then again, you can find anything with that."
"Illuminati? Very funny. What are you, 12? Who the Hell are you?"
"Just sit tight Stark. We'll take care of you."
Tony turned off his phone, but just before he did, he had to call Obadiah Stane. He had to make preparations for his trip to Afganistan.
...
AN: So I'd like to clarify some things. My version of Iron Man is going to have many similarities to the movies in terms of story since I freaking love those movies. Lots of stuff will be removed, but you'll notice some stuff. Don't expect this to come all at once though, since I'm gonna get other characters rolling. Now for the references and what they mean for the future.
If you're a real Spider-fan, you caught my Spider-Ham joke. Just wanted to add that. No particular reason. Now, as you can tell I gave Peter some extra friends like Eddie Brock (Venom) and Firestar from the "Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends" TV series. Greg Willis is Gravity, a hero who appeared in the early thousands. Whether or not Firestar and Gravity actually BECOME Firestar and Gravity is up in the air. If I do it, it won't be for a very long time. I really just did it to give Peter some friends away from the usual Harry Osborn, or the most cliche thing in Spider-Man fanfiction: Gwen Stacy/Mary-Jane having been longtime friends with Peter which is just always, always so annoying. I'm gonna introduce Gwen, Harry, Flash, MJ, etc later on. and one more thing. I am sticking with the old story about how Peter Parker was molested by a babysitter name "Skip" when he was younger. That's what Uncle Ben was talking about. It was an old story from the 80's in the Spider-Man comics, and they never properly retconned it, but they also don't ever talk about it. So I figured that something that big would still be a part of Peter's life, and I decided to go for it. If you don't believe what I'm saying, Google it. If you don't like that I included it, deal with it. It's not gonna be the sole focus of this story by any means.
As for Tony's side of the story, if anybody caught who "Rick Jones" was, good for you. He's the guy that was responsible for the creation of the Hulk and the formation of the Avengers, he's also the Hulk-like hero A-Bomb, look it up. But as I said in the story, he's not REALLY Rick Jones. He's a very popular character to say the least, and you'll be surprised how I merge him with Rick Jones from the comics. And if you thought my jab at the Illuminati was just a jab at the Illuminati, think again. The Illuminati in MARVEL are a council of the smartest/most important people in the Marvel U. Tony's father was never a part of it, but in this story he was. And if you're wondering what exactly I'm going to do with the FF...I don't know. I kinda just set them up for later. If you have a suggestion, that'd be great. They won't show up for now, but you never know what I'll pull. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Next Chapter: Tony Stark is taken captive, Peter finds a new job, and reencounters an old friend, and a scientist on the run causes mass destruction. Enter stage-right: The Incredible Hulk!