Previously:
Having stayed at the tower to bond and recover from the battle, the Avengers see off Thor and Loki as they travel back to Asgard and go their separate ways.
Tony is increasingly worried about the strange, inexplicable energy signature attaching itself to his cells.
With all the Avengers but Bruce gone, Tony's world is descending into hell. Plagued by an intense nightmare, Tony awakes to find that not only has the energy inside him smashed all the glass in his workshop, but his ribs are healing at an inhuman rate.
Chapter 9- Houston we have a problem.
Thor just stood in silence and watched as Loki was taken away by the guards. It saddened him greatly that the brother he once knew so well had become like a stranger, so bitter and so angry with the world. He caught his mother's eye as they waited outside the Great Hall. They were full of the sadness that Thor felt deep within his bones. The sting of betrayal was a harsh one, especially when caused by someone that you couldn't help but love, not matter what they did.
Thor longed for some time alone, but as soon as Loki had been sentenced, Odin demanded his presence.
Thor would not have been so concerned about his father's demand had it not been for the deeply troubled expression on his face. It was almost impossible not to notice the extra bustle about the city when he had returned with Loki. Many more guards than normal were armored ready for battle - that had been expected with the return of Loki. But now, Thor wondered, why so many when Loki was defeated?
"What is it, Father? What troubles you?"
"While you were on Midgard, did you see my messengers? Huginn and Muninn?"
Thor paused in realization. "Not while I was awake."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"It means, Father, that I dreamt of them several times after the battle but did not once see them while I was awake. Why? Did you send them? Have I missed a message?"
"Yes, my son, I did. This is troubling indeed, but confirms my suspicions."
"Father, please. I do not understand."
"I will explain later." He dismissed his son with the wave of his hand and turned to the guard posted beside him. Thor was just able to hear the rest of what was said before he fell out of earshot. "Tell them to focus their search on Midgard. I want it found now."
Wanted what found? What were they searching for on Earth? Thor turned back. If whatever this was concerned Earth, it concerned him.
"I'm sorry Father, but if this concerns Midgard I must know."
Odin let out a deep sigh. "Very well. Leave us," he commanded to the remaining stragglers in the room. Slowly, it emptied by Odin's command and Thor waited expectantly for his answer.
…
"Sir, I'm afraid that for the device to work you would have to remove the obstruction, and that would involve cutting the…"
"But that would break it anyway Jarvis, and I'm trying to fix it." Tony had now been in the workshop for going on five days, despite the short breaks he'd had to keep Bruce off his back.
"Yes, sir, I am aware. But what I am trying to say is that the only solution is to replace the part."
"But that would take months - can't I just rip it out?" Tony didn't wait for his AI's response and just started tugging at the lump of metal.
"Sir, to synthesize the part required would only take 3 days and I have calculated the force required to 'rip out' said obstruction to be over 2940 Newtons, so unless you intend on asking Captain Rogers or Thor to assist I suggest you stop your attempts before you hurt yourself."
"Nah, nah. I got this. It's coming free." Tony's face was starting to turn purple with the effort.
"I believe you are mistaken…"
"Got it!" Tony looked up at the ceiling triumphantly. "See? Easy, Jarvis!" Tony continued tinkering and started to fix the damage that the offending lump of metal had caused to his armor as his AI fell silent for a moment.
"But, sir. According to my calculations, that should be impossible."
"Well, you must have got it wrong. Happens to the best of us, J," Tony said flippantly. Yes, it had taken some effort, but it was by no means was that an impossible amount of force. He'd probably not taken into account the differing material strengths pulling at a certain angle would involve.
"With respect sir, I have not."
"Well you must have, Jarvis, because there's no way I just lifted 300kg with one arm."
"Sir, could you please draw your attention to the screen to your right?"
Tony dropped the offending metal chunk in shock when he saw the readings.
"What the…" That couldn't be right. He couldn't have applied that much force - it was inhuman!
"Jarvis, how?" Tony very well knew how but couldn't help asking.
"Well, sir, the unknown energy signature inside you reached a new peak level at the moment you removed the obstruction, so I can only assume…"
"What the fuck is this thing, Jarvis? I want it out of me. Now."
"I cannot come up with anything, sir. It appears biological, so perhaps if you were to seek some other expert advice."
"You want me to tell Banner?"
"Well, perhaps not tell him exactly, sir. Present it to him as a reading you obtained while through the wormhole… Sir, are you alright?"
Tony was on his knees. He wasn't quite sure how, or why. A wave of sickness had thrown itself over him and his head felt detached from his body. His chest tightened up, he couldn't breathe. The sound of his AI's questions were faint and misty. Everything seemed far away. He was being sucked out of the workshop to somewhere dark and cold. He wanted to stand, but his legs were like jelly. The air was being sucked away. What the hell was happening? Panic rose in his chest, his heartbeat pounded inside his skull, and suddenly he couldn't breathe at all. Just calm down, he thought, but telling himself that made everything worse. The overwhelming feeling of panic made him want to cry out, but his body refused him anything.
"Sir, it appears you are having a panic attack."
"Jarvis! Just- shut up! I need a minute," Tony gasped out between his manic breaths. He hadn't really heard what Jarvis had said, but suddenly every noise was loud and grating. He just wanted quiet. He tried to concentrate on breathing, on calming down. He was in the workshop, everything was fine. He could feel the panic slowly beginning to subside, but it was painfully slow.
"Sir, I'm calling Dr. Banner."
"NO!" Tony roared. Panic flooded back into his mind. Nobody could find him like this. He couldn't let Jarvis make that call.
Everything went black.
…..
"You remember the tales we told you as a child. Tales of the CAEB."
Thor's blood ran cold at Odin's words. "Father, you surely can't mean that this is more than legend?"
"I'm afraid that is exactly the case. We have had it locked up here since before you were born, deep below the dungeons; a place from which there is no escape."
"How have you concealed a being that we were told had the power to corrupt the greatest of creatures and destroy galaxies with a flick of its hand?" Thor demanded incredulously. He wanted so badly for his father's words to ring false.
"The details are long winded. All that you need to know is that it - or the creature that it has inhabited for these millennia - killed itself while you were on Midgard."
Thor paused in relief, but when he saw the opposite reaction on his father's face he wondered what he had missed. "But Father, is this not good news?"
"Completely the opposite," Odin confirmed. "While we kept that creature trapped here, the CAEB had no power. We kept it too weak even to stand. But in the death of the host, the CAEB is freed and can inhabit another being. And it will wreak havoc."
Dawning realization made Thor's blood run cold. "So you believe it has inhabited someone on Midgard."
"Yes. The cruelest part of the CAEB's nature is that it inhabits the body of a being who has shown a great sacrifice at the moment of its liberation. The recent events on Midgard, thanks to Loki, would have provided such circumstances."
"Yes, but many planets are raging wars, father. There are many who give such sacrifice - why do you believe it has come to Midgard?."
"Yes, but not wars of such nature, where Midgard's forces were so out-matched. Such wars give rise to great heroes, those who fight knowing they will surely die and in vain as they are so outmatched. And then there is the fact that Huginn and Muninn were unable to reach you. They informed me that they could not get close to you and that even when you gazed directly upon them you did not see. Only the CAEB is capable of such things."
"That is vexing indeed." Thor rubbed his face in dread, with the bifrost gone dealing with any situation was going to be difficult, let alone one as serious as this. "Will you allow me to return to Earth? My friends may be able to help with the search."
"That will not be necessary. The CAEB is pure evil and infinitely dangerous, especially in the hands of a mortal. I will deal with this. I am informing you out of courtesy, nothing more."
Thor resisted the urge to fight back. He knew from experience it only made his Father more closed and stubborn. He bowed his head and left the room. He would have to find another way to gain the answers he sought.
….
Tony opened his eyes groggily. Well, he assumed he'd just opened his eyes, but he still couldn't see anything. Was he blind? No, it was dark, he could just about make out the shape of his desk shift as he sat himself upright.
"Jarvis?" He was met with silence.
"Jarvis what is going on?"
His friendly AI still failed to respond and that was more than worrying. Jarvis was always there. Where was he? Everything in the workshop was dead, the computer screens were blank, and in fact they looked fried. What the hell had just happened? There was a small electric hum and the emergency lighting began to flicker to life.
"Switching to emergency power."
"Ah Jarvis, thank God! What the hell just happened?"
"If you would give me a moment to reboot and process the data, Sir, that would be appreciated."
That was weird. Since when did Jarvis need time?
There was the sound of footsteps on the stairs as Bruce walked into the workshop - not bothering with the door, considering the glass was already broken.
"Tony, what's going on? Jarvis started to call me down here then the whole tower went black."
"What, really? The whole tower?"
"Yeah, I think so. My lab just suddenly went dark and it was the same all the way down here. The elevators weren't working either - I had to take the stairs."
"Well shit. I thought I'd just shorted something in the lab." Tony had left a lot running that shouldn't have been unattended while he was on the floor panicking, but he couldn't think of anything that could have blown out the whole tower and Jarvis as well.
"Do you know what caused it?" Bruce was looking at Tony expectantly.
"No, not yet. I was working on a few things, Jarvis is just rebooting then I'll have a better idea."
Tony's phone started buzzing on the desk and he snatched it up quickly when he saw Pepper's caller ID.
"Hi Pep."
"Tony, what the hell have you done?! I'm in the middle of a meeting!"
"Why do you assume it my fault?"
"Well, was it?"
"Yes, but that's beside the point…"
"What could you possibly be doing down there that has caused the entire tower to black out?! It's hard enough doing this job when I can see."
"Ok, ok, I'm fixing it, Pep. Did the emergency power kick in?"
"Yes, but…"
"Then what's the problem? You have power, you can carry on with your dull meeting. then I'll have it fixed by the time you're finished."
He hung up sharply. Tony knew he was unnecessarily irate with Pepper, but he didn't need people badgering him right now - he needed to remain objective. He had a really bad feeling he couldn't shake, an anger building up inside. He knew that if the tower had been targeted this could be an attack, and he needed to be ready.
His phone immediately started buzzing again with an unknown caller ID. He had a strong urge to smash that phone, but right now he wanted answers.
"Hello?" Tony answered angrily.
"Stark, why am I getting reports that the power is down for half of New York?" Tony rubbed his temples. Great, now Fury was on his back.
"Yep, sorry, my fault. I'm fixing it." He just hung up. He couldn't be bothered with it.
His phone started buzzing again - Fury clearly wasn't satisfied. He picked it up and threw it at the wall, giving a satisfied sigh when it smashed to pieces and stopped ringing.
Bruce was giving Tony a quizzical look, having only picked up Tony's half of the conversations.
"Well, looks like I've taken down the power in half of New York."
Bruce nodded calmly, not really knowing what to say to Tony's building anger.
"Jarvis, you any further forward?"
"Yes, sir. I have traced the problem, but considering all the electronics in this room have been damaged irreparably I would suggest you go to the upstairs labs to view the data."
Tony started moving. This was just what he needed, with everything else that was going on.
"Do you need any help?" Bruce was feeling pretty useless and was desperate to do something.
"Not till I've figured out what the problem is, but I'll give you a shout." Tony was already halfway up the stairs. "You can check the coffee machine is working, God knows I can't get any work done if that's not functioning."
…
"Jarvis, why do I get the feeling that we've got a serious problem?"
"I really wouldn't know, sir."
"Thanks for that." Sarcasm really didn't suit Jarvis, Tony thought. He could barely believe all that happened in the past week. Since he'd come back it had all been change - not all of it bad - but right now he was just praying that he'd wake up and it had all been a dream. "You know what, this could be a good thing! Super strength, fast healing... what's not to like?"
"I would agree with you, sir, if it wasn't for the fact that you've taken out the power across half of New York and broken numerous other things."
"Maybe I can control it." He'd said it before, he was saying it now more to try and convince himself than anything. Unfortunately, Jarvis was too practical to be a comfort.
"That is highly unlikely. In fact, the way in which it has spread through your body makes it appear to me that it may be controlling you." Tony put his head in his hands. His AI was right, but what the hell could he do about it? He hated not understanding things and this in particular was just frightening. At first it had just been a shower door - some shattered glass - but the power of whatever was inside him was growing fast and if it grew any more... who knew what it could do?
"Sir, I really must advise we get help on this. You have tripled your calorie intake over the past week yet have still experienced dramatic weight loss. Your body cannot cope with the strain of sustaining both you and this energy source."
Tony nodded. "But who do we tell, Jarvis? SHIELD? A lot of good they are going to be."
"As I suggested earlier, perhaps we should run it past Dr. Banner. We could show him the energy signature and the way it interacts with cells."
"What, you mean my cells?"
"I would suggest that we do not tell him everything at this point. Perhaps we can inform him that it was residue on your suit that you picked up when you were through …."
"Ok Jarvis, you're repeating yourself, I can remember what happened before I blacked out." Tony's mind and heart were racing. This really sucked, but he'd solved the impossible before with a little help so maybe he would manage it again.
"Jarvis…" Tony started hesitantly. "How long do I have before my body can't cope?"
Even Jarvis paused before answering and Tony knew it wasn't because he was running calculations. "Between eight and ten days, sir."
Tony sighed - like him, his AI was almost never wrong. "And what happens then?"
"I have no idea."
….
Tony sat on the couch and twiddled his thumbs. The TV was on in the background but he hadn't been watching it; instead, he was deep in thought.
Pepper left her meeting ready to run down to the lab and give Tony an earful, but as she thought about it she realized that he had sounded stressed on the phone. She also knew that he'd have been working hard to fix the problem, so in the end she decided it was best to leave it. The last thing she had expected to see when the elevator reached the penthouse was Tony, sitting on the sofa and staring at the ceiling.
"I thought you'd be in the shop. Apparently, you took out half the power in New York."
"Well I fried everything in the shop, it needs replacing and that's going to take a few hours."
"Oh, so your own lab has finally kicked you out?"
"Seems like it."
Oh dear, Pepper thought. It seemed that the tower had acquired a bored Tony Stark and that was never a good thing.
"Are you Ok, Tony? You look…" Pepper paused. He looked fine. But, she just had a feeling that there was something wrong with him. She didn't know why, there certainly weren't any physical symptoms but she just couldn't shake the feeling.
"I'm fine."
"I'm taking it, by your lack of activity, that the problem's been solved?"
"Yeah, power's back up. Jarvis sorted it."
"Why don't you go help Bruce, and I'll cook some lunch?" Tony visibly perked up at the mention of food. Pepper was pleased - she imagined that Tony hadn't been eating properly since she'd been busy. He rarely did and he was still recovering (whether he liked to admit it or not).
Tony couldn't deny that he was hungry. His insides had been screaming at him for days, and no matter how much he ate he couldn't get the hunger pains to leave him. Pepper's cooking was always great. But as for going up to help Bruce… well, he'd been avoiding that for obvious reasons.
Pepper had asked how he was. She had been the first to do so, despite everything that had been happening, and he couldn't help wondering how no one else had noticed. When he looked in the mirror, he was gray - deathly gray - and his clothes were starting to hang off him where 10 pounds of weight should have been. He was hardly a stick, but weight loss this rapid could never be healthy and another week or so of this and he would be looking like a walking skeleton.
Whatever was inside him must be hiding itself from the world, and consequently the effect it was having on Tony's body. Nobody had really asked him how he was because to them he looked perfectly alright.
"Bruce will call if he needs me." Tony needed some more time to think, and in all honesty now he was sitting down the thought of how much effort it was going to take to get back to his feet made him feel shaky and weak.
"Ok, I'll give him an ETA on dinner then." Pepper knew that Tony needed to be distracted, and Bruce being Bruce would only ask Tony for help if he really, really had to - especially if he thought that Tony was busy.
Bruce looked up from his pile of papers as Pepper entered the room.
"I'm guessing that Tony's fixed his little mishap, then."
"Yes, it appears so. I'm just coming up to ask a favor."
"Sure, anything." Bruce smiled.
"Well, Tony's workshop is out of action until his equipment is replaced and he's… well, he's bored. I was wondering if you could call him up to help or something."
Bruce chuckled, "Yeah, sure. No problem."
"Thank you, Bruce. You haven't met a bored Tony Stark yet and it's not something I'd advise putting on your bucket list."
"I can only imagine."
"Ok, I'm making lunch. It should be about an hour so don't get into something too involved."
…..
Tony had been in the lab with Bruce for twenty minutes. He knew a set up when he saw it. Bruce had asked for help but he didn't really need it. Even so, he didn't begrudge it. It was nice to keep busy and he was enjoying the company. Tony knew he couldn't put it off any longer; he needed Bruce's help.
"Actually, Bruce, I had something I wanted to run by you. Jarvis, can you get up the thing we found?"
"Certainly, sir."
Bruce stared at the screens in amazement. This was something he'd never seen before - and if he was honest he wasn't completely sure what he was looking at.
"I'm guessing this is alien in nature?"
"Yep, just something I picked up when I was exploring deep space." Tony shivered.
Bruce nodded his head and tried to take in all the information that Tony had gathered so far.
"This is weird, the way it interacts with cells. It's almost like a virus, but more than that, it's clearly alive - even when outside the host cell. That's certainly not normal."
"I'm trying to find a way to separate it from the cells and destroy it. It emits a very specific energy signature, so I'm tracing it to make sure that no more of it came back with me."
"Have you found any yet?"
"No, but its early days and I want to be certain. I don't really like the way I don't understand it."
"I have to agree. this is frightening, the way it is draining the life from the host cells without taking them over. It's more of a parasite than an infection."
"Sir, Miss Potts would like me to inform you and Dr. Banner that your meal is ready."
"Ok, J. We'll be right down."
Bruce was still engrossed in the new problem Tony had presented him with. "Can you leave this with me?" Mentally, Bruce had already put all his other projects on hold; he had a feeling that this was far more important and time critical.
"Yeah, sure, just keep it under wraps for now - until we know more. No point in panicking people."
Bruce nodded and turned to follow Tony out of the room. Whatever this was, it was sinister and he could tell that it was freaking Tony out too.
"You've got this well contained, right? I mean, it can't get out." Bruce was considering the damage that could be done if it went unrestricted. He had seen the effects on individual cells, but a whole organism was an entirely different ball game.
"Yeah, I've got it contained. It's the fact there may be more out there that worries me." Tony wasn't lying, though he had to admit he was slightly more worried about himself at this point. Jarvis' scans were conclusive - there was no more of this energy on Earth other than what was inside him. The question was, was that a good thing, or a bad thing?
Thank you so much for the faves/follows so far guys. Please let me know how you are finding it.
