Peter woke with a start and clutched his stomach. His stomach always lurched along with the ship as it descended into the water. The Red Queen wasn't very graceful.

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and sat up.

Boots thudded against the wooden floorboards as the crew rushed about, trampling any chance Peter had of going back to sleep. He must have missed the wake up call.

A fist pounded against his door and Peter flinched as it wrattled from the force.

"Get up, boy! We're docking!"

Peter jumped up and blindly put on his clothes. It was too dark to see and he didn't plan on scorching his retinas this early in the morning. He was uncomfortably aware of two glowing eyes looking at him in the darkness. He shivered. Wade would take some getting used to.

Peter walked over to unplug Wade and tripped over the robot's foot. He groaned, more out of frustration than pain, and stood up. Then, he quickly unplugged the mechanical man from the wall and carefully shuffled over to the door and opened it.

The halls were silent. Everyone must have already headed updeck to rig the ship in place. Peter listened quietly for a moment. He could hear the crew bustling about and knew if he didn't help out soon, he'd be in big trouble.

Peter headed to the upper deck and made himself useful tying knots and carrying cargo. It was hard to avoid running into people as everyone hurried about. Even Mr. Fisk, the head engineer, was busy. Peter had nearly crashed into him. The man had looked up from his diagnostics report and glared before shuffling off to the mess hall.

A few minutes later, everyone flooded the mess hall and squeezed into line for breakfast. Peter sighed as Cook scooped a large blob of mush onto his tray. Then, he walked over to his table and sat down.

"Why is Mr. Fisk grumpier than usual?" Peter asked.

Logan pointed at Wade. "Because of that."

"Yeah, you neglected helping him upkeep the ship for that walking scrap pile." Ajax added.

Peter opened his mouth to say something but changed his mind, deciding to push mush around on his tray instead. It was true. He had screwed up. Time to change the subject.

"What are you going to do first when we go ashore?"

"Try all the food, obviously." Ajax poked at the gelatinous glob on his plate.

Logan nodded in agreement.

"My food supply is running low so I need to stock up before we leave. Otherwise, I might have to actually eat Cook's food." Ajax grimaced.

They talked about all the culinary delights Genosha had to offer and what they wanted to eat first. Genosha wasn't really known for its food but anything was better than Cook's cooking. Time passed quickly and a shrill whistle sounded, signaling that breakfast was over.

Everyone quickly rose from their seats to throw their trash away and stack their trays. Peter dumped his tray into the trash, careful to avoid the mush that dripped down the sides and onto the floor. He tossed it onto the teetering pile of trays and quickly walked off in case it decided to topple over.

Everyone lined up next to the gangway to receive their assignments for the day. Peter sighed. He was always stuck at the back of the line because of his last name. It felt like the line was taking forever! Since he had nothing else to do, Peter looked around at what would be his playground.

Fisherman unloaded their hauls of fish and shouted back and forth as they maneuvered their way across the dock. Sailors carried their precious cargo of spices and other treasures aboard the ships, dodging fish being thrown into the arms of nearby fisherman. The fish were thrown into carts and hauled to market. Fish guts littered the dock.

So, it wasn't ideal but it didn't matter. Peter looked past the ships, sailors and fish guts to gaze at the real prize.

Brightly colored buildings jutted out from the rocky coastline farther away and seagulls soared overhead on the strong ocean breeze. They squawked back and forth to each other and occasionally argued over fish, just like the fishermen and sailors. Peter laughed.

Peter breathed in deeply. Salty ocean air mixed with the aroma of freshly baked bread, sweat, fish, motor oil and flavorful spices. Genosha was a mixed bag of smells.

He looked up as the line shuffled forward for the umpteenth time and realized he was at the head of the line. Finally! Peter held out a hand for his assignment, ready to explore.

"Captain has a special job for you." Logan said as he grabbed Peter's outstretched hand and pulled him out of line. "Go see her."

Peter made his way over to the captain as Wade trailed behind him.

"You have a special job for me?" Peter asked.

"A special job that I've reserved just for you." The captain said as she waved a crew member over. "Bring the tools!"

A mop and bucket were held out to him.

"Your punishment didn't end after cleaning the bowsprit." The captain continued. "It might end here, depending on how well you mop the entire ship. Get started." She waved him away.

Peter snatched the items from the crew member's hands and stomped off. He grumbled the entire way to the cargo hold, the bottom-most floor, and started mopping. Wade watched him.

Peter looked down at the murky water inside the bucket. It was already dirty. He groaned. To refill it, he would have to walk up at least two floors to reach the barracks. It would take forever to fill up the bucket from that drinking fountain.

Sighing, Peter looked towards the ceiling. That left the upper deck. He'd have to walk up three floors, scoop saltwater out of the bay and lug the heavy, sloshing bucket all the way back down.

It sloshed onto the floor as Peter picked it up and walked a few feet away to mop more. Wade's loud, metallic footfalls followed after him.

Maybe he could get Wade to do it.

"Hey, Wade. Do you think y-"

Metal clanged against metal as Wade's foot collided with the bucket, spilling water everywhere.

Peter spun around.

"Everyone else gets to go out and escape the ship for a while but me! I'm stuck here cleaning. Not only that but I'm stuck here with you."

Peter scowled and tried to shake the water from his shoes before glaring up at Wade again.

Wade stayed quiet for a few minutes, staring off into space. Peter turned away and tried wringing out his socks.

"Everyone except for a few people have left the ship and those that remain are a fair distance away." Wade noted.

Peter walked over to the ladder and listened. Nothing.

"Is the ship really that empty?"

Wade nodded.

"And, you can tell where everyone is?"

"Only within and around the immediate vicinity of the ship."

"Good enough for me!"

Peter dropped the mop and left the bucket wherever it had rolled, taking the stairs two at a time and bursting onto the lower deck. Wade ran after him.

Peter ran around the corner and stopped. Wade didn't stop fast enough and bumped into Peter. The force caused him to stumble into the middle of the hall. He quickly looked around.

Phew. No one was there.

"How about now? Is anyone near us?"

"The coast is still clear."

They headed to the upper deck and straight for the gangplank. Peter strode across, picking up his pace the closer he got to freedom. He grinned triumphantly before trying to avoid slipping on the slick dock.

"I thought Captain ordered is to stay aboard the ship?" Wade asked as he followed Peter.

"Who does she think she is, ordering me around like that?" Peter fumed.

"The captain of this vessel."

"That's not what I meant, Wade! And, I don't have to follow orders all the time. Orders are just suggestions. Orders can be ignored."

"You continue to use that word." Wade said. "I do not believe it means what you think it means."

"Just follow me!" Peter snapped.

"That is an order."

"Shut up, Wade!"

Now that they were closer, Peter admired the colorful buildings that towered over the stalls. Bright ribbons were roped between them, criss-crossing high above his head. Carts were wheeled through the crowd below.

Peter jumped as a mule snorted behind him and quickly moved out of its way.

He walked down the street and turned the corner. Stalls crowded in among one another, crammed into the square. Well, what he thought was a square. Most stalls lined the street but others sat directly in it, forcing passerby to squeeze past.

Peter marveled at the ornate rugs, colorful clothing and other fabrics draped on or above the stalls. The craftsmanship was amazing. Also, they were useful for avoiding the hot sun.

Merchants stood around their wares, trying to entice anyone and everyone to take a look at what was for sale. Voices boomed over the noise and friendly faces welcomed Peter and Wade to spend money at their stand and not their neighbor's.

A lot of people were walking through the streets so Peter was pretty confident about being able to hide in the crowd. He couldn't hide from the crew forever but until he ran into them, he wouldn't be too concerned.

Lines of stalls were jammed even closer than before, curling in on themselves and stretching away from each other, splintering the large crowd off into groups. The two wandered down a side street created from it.

Some of the stands had some really weird items as well as some pretty cool ones. One stand had orange peppers that made flames shoot out of the eater's mouth, another had scarves from the Spithra Desert and another had ice picks as big as Peter was tall. Peter tried to pick one up before shrugging and inspecting the scarves instead.

He picked one up and ran the soft silk through his fingers as Wade leaned over his shoulder.

"You do not have money. Why are you shopping?" Wade asked.

Peter turned to see the standowner eyeing him suspiciously.

"I'm window shopping, Wade, so I can buy something when I come back. I don't steal." He locked eyes with the stand's owner. "I don't."

The owner snatched the merchandise away from him. Peter frowned and stalked off.

"Next time, don't mention how much money I have. People are suspicious enough already." He grumbled.

"I did not realize pointing out the amount of money you have made you 'suspicious.'"

"Well, it does." Peter looked around. "Let's go look at this shop, it's got some weird knick knacks."

Wherever something interesting seemed to be, the two would stop and check it out. Genosha had some really weird stuff. Peter recognized a lot of things they had but sometimes he was very baffled at what something even was. Wade sometimes knew, somehow.

They slipped between stalls and became lost in the vibrant labyrinth Genosha was famous for. The fabrics that hung overhead blocked out the sun completely now.

Peter weaved in and out of the crowd and among the stalls trying to avoid being bumped and shoved around more than necessary. When he finally squeezed his way to the other side of the street, he turned and waited for Wade.

It was easy to spot him wading through the crowd since he was at least a head taller than most of the people there. The people seemed to part around Wade before melting together on the other side. From now on, Peter decided, Wade would go first.

Peter looked at the window display of the storefront he had planned to go in. In the time it had taken the two of them to cross the street, it was already filled with people. He shrugged.

"Nothing looked very interesting anyway."

He followed his nose down the street and dragged Wade over to the nearest food cart. Those always had something interesting for sale.

Peter leaned in close to try and see past the steam that clouded the containers. He smiled at the salesperson who was babbling in a language he didn't understand. Raising an eyebrow, Peter waved a hand over the containers. Hopefully, the vendor knew what the universal gesture for, 'What the heck is this?,' meant.

The vendor whisked the container's lid away and Peter grinned. Mm. He marveled at the golden shells of flaky, steamy goodness. They smelled amazing.

Peter watched as the vendor partially wrapped one in foil and held it out to him. He reached for it but the vendor pulled it away. Confused, Peter stood looking at the vendor's outstretched, sweaty palm instead.

Oh, yeah.

He had no money. Peter tried to ignore his growling stomach and turned away.

As he turned to leave he saw a flash of blood-red hair mixed in with the crowd, slowly heading towards him and Wade. Oh, no.

He quickly shoved Wade behind the vendor's stall.

"Where are we going?" Wade asked.

"Shh!"

Peter looked around.

The stalls were so tightly packed that they created alleyways within alleyways. But, of course, the two of them had to duck behind the only stall with a dead end.

If they hid long enough, maybe she would just walk past them?

Peter squeezed into the space between the stall and the wall of the building behind them to hide near Wade. There wasn't much room and Peter was uncomfortably aware of how close the robot was.

Even with his intimidating height, large muscles and B-horror movie face, Wade wasn't scary. Well, not to Peter. He had a feeling a few passersby would disagree with him, judging by how they had quickly looked away and walked away even quicker.

It was the way Wade looked at him that made him press against the wall. Wade's icy blue eyes had a way of staring at him, or through him - analyzing and cataloging everything that he was, his secrets, dreams, fears - and filing it away somewhere for future reference. It was creepy. And, the way Wade's eyes seemed to glow in the half-light only made it worse.

This was almost as bad as being caught.

Peter squeezed his way free and crouched down. Then, he slowly inched his way forward to peek around the corner.

"What are you doing?" Wade asked loudly.

Peter jumped slightly and twisted around to see Wade looking over his shoulder.

"Shh! You weren't supposed to move! Go hide!"

He waved him away and turned around.

Peter froze and stared at the black boots in front of him.

"Uh…" Peter began.

"I don't know what you're doing here with Wade and I don't want to know. If you're not too busy, come walk with me." Natasha said.

Peter felt his face heat up and he jumped to his feet.

"Don't get weird ideas like that, Nat!" He whined as he chased after her.

Wade followed after them.

"What ideas? I think you're the one getting ideas here." She smirked at him as they kept walking. "Are you okay? You look a little flushed."

"Your heart rate has increased." Wade added.

"Shut up, Wade!" Peter snapped over his shoulder before turning back to Natasha. "What do you want?"

"Smart boy." Natasha said as she stopped in front of a stand. She took three wrapped items - like the one's Peter had seen earlier - and passed two to Peter. She paid the vendor, pretending to be unaware of Peter's suspicious face.

Natasha actually bought him food? She really wanted something; Natasha was too stingy with money to go out of her way to buy him food.

They mixed back into the crowd and she led them to an unoccupied bench. Peter shrugged. He would probably end up doing whatever she wanted anyway. Natasha had ways of getting too much dirt on people.

"Are you not going to eat? I hear this is some of Genosha's best cuisine. I think they're called chimichangas." Natasha said as she ate her food.

Small talk. Not a good sign, Peter noted. He hesitated before biting into his own. It was really good, especially since he was really hungry.

He turned towards Wade and pointed at the chimichanga. "Are you gonna eat that?"

"I do not consume human food."

Peter happily took the food from Wade.

"Peter, I have a favor to ask of you." Natasha said.

"Hm?" Peter munched on his second chimichanga.

"I need you to get a new part for the ship's freezer for me. If we don't fix it soon, all the food will spoil. It's supposed to be at Genosha's Parts Emporium."

"I escaped the ship to avoid doing jobs for anybody; why should I do yours?"

"You said it yourself: you escaped. And from the captain, no less. We can keep today between us if you do this for me. Give it to me as soon as you return to the ship. Before dinner, preferably."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Go blackmail someone else." Peter grumbled.

Natasha ruffled his hair before getting up and disappearing into the crowd.

Peter slouched down on the bench. Great. At least it kept him off the ship and out of trouble. But, it still sucked though.

He didn't even know where this stupid Emporium was. Peter tossed the wrappers into the trash. Oh well. Time to get it over with.

"Alright, Wade. Up and at 'em. Let's go." Peter shoved himself off the bench and waited for Wade to stand as well.

A guttural growl followed by a whistling scream erupted from above above his head and Peter ducked. He spun around to look at where the sound had come from. An old speaker.

"What was that?" Peter asked.

"It was Badoon. It translates to, 'Hello! Welcome! Enjoy your time here,' and is a common phrase among the Badoon shop owners." Wade explained.

Peter glanced around the store, much more relaxed now that he knew the growling and screaming didn't mean certain death.

The dark walls seemed to press in around him and dust and cobwebs were everywhere. The cashier looked just as creepy. The black-eyed, reptilian creature towered over the cash register it was manning and its muscles rippled as it wiped down the machine.

The cash register was the only clean thing in the place.

Peter walked towards the cashier. "Hey, uh, do you know wh-"

It immediately whipped its head in Peter's direction and glared. Well, it looked like it was glaring thanks to it's low, sloped forehead.

"Nevermind." Peter said before walking off.

He looked at the piece of paper with his horrible scrawl on it and reread the name of the item they were looking for.

"Do you think they'll have what Nat needs?" Peter said as he wandered down an aisle with Wade close behind.

Several shelves were filled with piles of parts and nothing was labeled. Peter sighed. Maybe Wade could just scan everything. Most robots had scanners of some kind.

"The statistics of finding it in such an eclectic collection is not promising." Wade scanned the cluttered objects. "Although, humans like to have the odds stacked against them, usually. Shall we start searching?"

Peter shrugged and walked to one of the many shelves, sifting through the junk. The store had just about everything in stock, except, of course, the part they needed.

Wade's search of the shelf across from Peter was also fruitless. His broad shoulders made it difficult to squeeze between the shelves and they brushed against things, making them fall. As Wade reached out to catch them or pick them up, it only made the situation worse.

Peter glanced at the cashier behind the counter. The Badoon scowled. Peter flashed an apologetic smile and shooed Wade out of the aisle so that he could pick up the objects. He sighed as he crouched down. What a mess.

He hastily started stuffing items back onto the shelves. Wade kept moving about, making it hard to keep an eye on him and clean up his mess.

"I found the item we are looking for."

Peter looked up as Wade picked up an item from the mess and held it out to Peter. "Shall we go pay?"

Peter looked the item over to make sure it wasn't broken or defective. A moment later, he nodded.

The guttural growl and whistling scream rang through the store again and Peter peeked at the door from behind a shelf. Of course, it had to someone else from the ship's crew.

Ajax leaned against the doorway to catch his breath before hobbling farther into the store on his crutches. Peter quickly jumped to his feet and headed to the back of the store with Wade in tow. He sifted through the shelves as calmly as possible. Maybe he would blend in and not be caught.

"Peter?"

Crap.

He turned towards Ajax. "Oh, hi."

"I thought you got stuck on mop duty and weren't allowed to leave the ship."

"We-" Wade began.

"We're free!" Peter cut in. "Cap'n changed her mind. She decided to let us off with a warning."

"Oh, she did?" Ajax's brows furrowed as he scanned the shelves. "That's nice. Have you seen any heat-resistant tape, multi-conductor cables and a ferrite core, by any chance? The cashier said they're supposed to be over here."

Peter shook his head.

Ajax shrugged and grabbed a few parts.

"Oh well. Could you help me with these? I can't carry them all since I have to use my crutch."

"Yeah, sure."

The two headed towards the counter. Peter set his items down and awkwardly glanced around the shop as Ajax and the cashier took turns exchanging and converting currency. Finally, the cashier handed Ajax the bag full of parts. Ajax sagged under its weight.

"Need some help?" Peter asked, grabbing the bag.

"No, thanks. I can carry a bag back to the ship, Peter." Ajax huffed.

He tried to take the bag from Peter and his eyes went wide as he lost his balance. Ajax crashed into Peter instead, nearly sending them both sprawling.

"Perfectly capable, huh?"

"Shut up."

After snatching his bag and crutch from Peter, Ajax angrily hobbled out the door and into the street. The door chime screamed its goodbye after him.

The Badoon looked up from the hologram it was scrolling through as Peter placed his item on the counter. The alien quickly scanned it and held out a hand. It snorted. Peter handed it his money and the alien busied itself converting their currencies.

"Thanks." Peter said as he took the bag and his change.

As he pushed open the door to leave, the door chime didn't sound. Instead, a barking screech came from the ceiling. The cashier lurched towards the two. Peter looked at the rushing Badoon - momentarily frozen - before he ran for the hills.

He didn't stop for Wade but heard him chase after him. Peter hightailed it through an alleyway and onto another sidestreet. He shoved his way through the crowds, doing his best to put as much distance between him and that creepy shop. He finally stopped when he made it to an alley near the docks.

Peter felt like his lungs were going to explode as he rested his hands on his knees. Wade slowed to a stop beside him.