Peter had to wake up early the next morning - it was only 7 AM when he was already in the shower. He knew that today, the Avengers would be travelling to Siberia, so he wanted to be prepared. The thought of being in a foreign country to take down a terrorist organization instead of a vacation was... certainly interesting, he could say that much.
He hadn't slept the best last night, however... he had a nightmare about Taskmaster. It was mainly the two fighting, and in the end, he lost; and he could swear he could still hear that upset Sokovian female voice calling out his name in distress, before the bounty hunter disappeared, and he was left in complete darkness... alone.
One of Peter's deepest fears was being left alone; he had experienced it for a while before, and it had scarred him mentally.
But this wasn't his current train of thought. He was trying his best to think about positive things - he had heard a new robotics industry had opened in Queens called "Octavius Industries", which was exciting for a number of reasons. Second, he had texted MJ a lot last night - the two got into a really pleasant conversation about disturbing things that had gone down in Siberia.
Y'know, typical motivating stuff.
And now, he was getting a FaceTime call from May - he opened it, and was greeted by his aunt. "Hey Peter! I remember you said today was the big day, right?"
"Yep! Off to Siberia... woo-hoo!" he said, trying to sound more excited than he was.
"Oh, honey, I know its a bit nerve-wracking," May said, offering a small smile. "But, you want my two cents? Stick close to Wanda. The way you talk about her... its like you have a big sister! Just stick close to her, and Captain America of course, and you should be fine."
Peter smiled - genuinely this time. "Thanks May. You really are the best."
"What can I say?" May giggled, smiling back. "Love you, Peter. Take care for me, okay?"
"Will do," Peter said. "Love you too May."
And with that, the call ended - and it was only a few minutes after that he heard a knock on his door. "Come in," he said; he had a feeling he knew who it was, but it turned out to be Captain America instead of Wanda, who he had expected. Nonetheless, he still welcomed the captain inside.
"You feel alright, kid?" asked Steve.
"Yeah... just a little nervous, that's all," Peter said.
Steve nodded. "I understand. However, I've noticed you and Wanda have a certain bond between you two - I recommend you two stick close together. You both are excellent Avengers, but you're both stronger together. Sound good?"
"Sounds great," Peter nodded.
"Excellent," Steve smiled. "Go ahead and eat breakfast, kiddo. We're leaving in two hours."
Peter nodded, and followed Steve to the cafeteria - most people were eating cereal, since they didn't really have time to cook themselves a full meal if they wanted to be ready for their trip.
"Morning Peter," Wanda smiled at her friend, who had just sat down next to her. "Did you rest well last night?"
"Not really," Peter answered. "I had a pretty nasty nightmare about Taskmaster."
"Oh no!" Wanda said, rubbing his back. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah... I really can't remember a lot of it now," he nodded. "But I'm just really glad you're still here."
"Aww, Peter, I'll always be here," Wanda said, giving him a hug from the side. "You can count on that."
He smiled at Wanda's touch - she was so gentle, and so caring... he didn't understand how some people were scared of her. She was so sweet.
Peter knew he was definitely sharing a hotel room with her.
6:00 AM, Siberia
Taskmaster's transport helicopter had just touched down in Siberia - specifically, in a small, seemingly empty building in Vladivostok. The windows were seemingly tinted to prevent light from entering and escaping. The cool morning air was beginning to roll in, but it was still near complete darkness outside.
"Took long enough," muttered Taskmaster.
The main pilot uttered some code in Russian into his mic, and the building doors opened - three people stepped out. Two guards, both wearing heavy coats and carrying large guns, were next to a woman wearing a green shirt and black boots. Her hair was jet black, with a streak of green down the front.
Taskmaster stepped off of the helicopter, and walked forward to greet his fellow comrade.
Her name was Ophelia Sarkissian, aka Viper.
"Добрый вечер, Тони Мастерс," said the woman.
"I didn't have time to practice my Russian on the helicopter," Taskmaster said bluntly. "English, please?"
The woman scowled lightly, but she complied. "Good evening, Tony Masters," she said, her accent running thick through her words. "I trust your trip to Siberia was pleasant?"
"So-so, could've had more competent staff," he muttered.
Ophelia chuckled. "Couldn't we all... come, I would like to show you around."
"This place looks awful," Taskmaster muttered.
"Its what's on the inside that counts," Viper smirked. "You Americans say that when you are thinking about love, no?"
"Wouldn't know, haven't had time to think about love in years," Taskmaster said.
Viper already liked her newest business partner - cynical, a dry and dark sense of humor, emotionless... he was perfect.
She had waited a long time for someone like Tony Masters.
"So this is where you manufacture your poison, huh?" he said. "Its... decent on the inside, at the very least."
"You must be seeing some impressive shit if you're not in amazement at my poison empire," Ophelia said, smirking.
"Not really a new thing to see groundbreaking stuff in New York," Taskmaster admitted. "At least, with Oscorp still running. Still, I have to admit... you've done a damn decent job, Ophelia."
"Glad you can see that," Viper said, putting her hands on her hips. "I was afraid I'd have to give you a taste of my medicine to convince you."
Taskmaster chuckled. "So, the Avengers should be on their way here pretty dang soon. My calculations, they'll arrive at dusk. I'd say we should start preparing."
"Way ahead of you," Ophelia nodded.
Suddenly, she pulled a whip out of her jacket, and cracked it against the ground. "Back to work, men and women! We must prepare for the arrival of our latest guests..."
She then turned to face Taskmaster once more, and smirked. "Hail Hydra."
As she strutted off, Taskmaster just scoffed. "Whatever..."
Ten hours after takeoff...
Peter was currently fast asleep on the Quinjet, dreaming about... nothing, really. Just sleeping. But that was okay.
He had been asleep for about an hour and a half now, and the rest of the Avengers present were mostly concentrated on gathering any and all info they could on Viper's current whereabouts - they had narrowed her location down to somewhere in Vladivostok, and T'Challa had already booked them a very decent hotel - being a king certainly had its perks.
Wanda was sitting down currently, reading a book she had recently grown attached to. Clint was piloting, and Nat was in the co-pilot seat. The rest of the team was trying to keep themselves busy so they didn't accidentally wake Peter up - they'd never forgive themselves if they did.
However, the kid woke up on his own - and he was clearly in a daze. "Wha... when are we?"
"Hey Peter," Wanda said, looking up from her book. "We're almost there. Possibly another half-hour ahead."
Peter sighed. "Just wish we could get to the hotel already... so sleepy, y'know?"
She smiled softly. "Yeah, I agree with you."
"Well, you kids are in luck," Natasha said from the co-pilot seat. "We've actually only got twenty minutes until we land."
"I have rented a limousine for our transportation to the hotel," said T'Challa.
"Is there anything you can't get?" Bucky chuckled.
T'Challa smirked, but then sighed. "A victory against your Secretary of State, apparently."
"Damn, that's cold," Rhodey muttered.
It had been forty minutes since they had landed - forty minutes that consisted of landing, waiting on the limo, then going on a pretty lengthy ride to their hotel. The king was recognized instantly, thankfully, so getting checked in was not a big issue. Steve was with T'Challa, Rhodey with Sam, Clint with Nat and Bucky, and Peter with Wanda.
The very minute they stepped into their room, Peter rolled his suitcase into the corner and crashed down onto the bed - he had worn his pajamas for the trip, so he had no worries about changing. He barely had the strength to pull himself underneath the covers.
However, as Wanda moved to the other bed, Peter suddenly stirred.
"Oh no..."
"What is it?" she asked.
"I forgot... was gonna let you have first dibs," said Peter.
Wanda sighed, before chuckling happily. "Oh Peter... even in sleep, you are still such a gentleman. I'm fine with this bed."
"You sure? I'll get up," Peter said, moving to take the covers off.
"No no no! Lay back down, go to sleep," Wanda said. "You've had a long day. Rest now."
He nodded. "Alrighty... night Wanda."
"Goodnight Peter," she smiled softly. "Sweet dreams."
And with that, she crawled underneath her own covers, ready to go to sleep and finally get a good night's rest.
And yet, they were completely unaware of how close they were to their enemies - Taskmaster and Viper were only a few miles away.
So... will Peter, Wanda, and the Avengers take down Taskmaster and Viper? Will the Spider-Scarlet duo come out victorious over Taskmaster once and for all? All these questions and more will be answered within the next few chapters!
I'm planning to wrap this story up around Chapter 15 - that includes two epilogues! The finale to the Taskmaster/Viper arc should be around Chapter 13! We're so close you guys! I wanted to thank you all for being so supportive and loving of this story... really, you guys mean everything to me. Thank you all so much. :)
And also - late shoutout to the guest who said they geeked out when I responded to their review! You're really cool, y'know? I flippin LOVE awesome guest reviewers! :D
Well guys, I think that's it for now! Please take care, and I hope to see you next chapter! Thanks for reading! Love you all! :D