15 hours limping across sun parched railways the band of young riders made their way back to dodge city. sweat bead across their faces, the dry haze of the heat started causing their muscles to become sore.
"next time somebody follows along with the horses so we're not suffering this bull crap again!" Colt groaned, his feet ached and his eyes became blurry by sweat pooling in them.
The sun beat down on them for miles when finally dodge city came into the horizon. They staggered and wobbled into the city collapsing outside the nearest tavern "waiter check please" Peter stammered just before falling on his face into the dirt.
"hahahaaa" the team burst out laughing for minutes on end whether it was from Peter collapsing or just letting sink in the realization that finally their hunt was over, Shade was dead and despite being outlaws for the rest of their lives there was some freedom in that.
Laura and Sasha eventually found the others and brought them back to the inn, there they slept soundly but when Peter came to it was not a peaceful awakening. He woke up to a gun barrel pointed at his face and Laura was the one holding it.
"morning cute stuff how was your nap?" Laura asked, Peter went to sit up but couldn't, he had been restrained, "yeah couldn't have you using those demon powers of yours to snatch this from my hand"
"why Laura? I thought you were our friend?" Peter asked, "I thought…"
"you thought what my mother wanted you to think sweet heart, but us Winchester girls we have one value over everything the value of the almighty dollar and the dollar value of your friends is a nice retirement fund but you there is bounty on so you're to be kept out of the way until my mother and the marshals arrive"
His anger spiked with betrayal but he still weakened from dehydration and possible heat sickness so he sat calmly biding his time.
The others had been bound and disarmed with a precaution of Sasha standing on a chair in the middle of the room with a noose around her neck. "I can't believe that bitch! Never should have trusted her Marek!" Sasha growled with spite in her voice, her chair wobbled slightly under her feet causing a jump of fear.
"Sasha don't move, I'll figure something out just stay calm" Marek ordered his eyes scanned the room but all their knives and guns had been taken "can anybody pull a nail or a sharp piece of iron from the floor boards?" he asked.
Before anyone responded the door opened and in walked a very troubling sight, Samantha Winchester smiling like she'd struck gold.
"I didn't think Laura could actually pull this off alone yet here you all sit ready for collection got to love it when a plan goes off so smoothly" she grinned
(present day)
Ava Ayala was sitting in a tree with a paintball gun resting on stomach, she was her teams' sentry watching for the boys to try and capture their flag. But her thoughts were elsewhere on someone else, Mr. Fantastic said the reconfiguration of the sceptre would be done in a couple days and then Johnny would travel through the ages to find Peter and bring him home.
But the hiccup was, what would she do when saw Peter again she missed him she was also mad at him for ignoring her orders about not waiting for back up.
Lost in thought Ava almost didn't see Sam trying to sneak up the creek bed "nice try bucket head" she smirked as she raised her rifle and lined up a shot "that's it Sam keep coming, just a little more" she watched Sam stand up then squeezed the trigger firing a ball straight for his face.
Sam went down writhing in pain leaving Ava with a satisfied smile on her face.
(1895)
The marshals arrived in dodge city by the dozen with a caged wagon in tow "remember we want them alive so they can stand trial" the first Marshal ordered.
They entered the inn, guns drawn "everyone stay where you are this a simple arrest"
Upstairs Laura had left the room to meet her mother leaving Peter alone to finally break free. With a simple flex of his muscles he broke the ropes around his wrists "it's not much but it'll suffice for now, I hate this place every time I turn around my powers slow down" he groaned. His guns were no where to be found in the room which left him relying on his spider attributes again.
He heard the sound of boots tromping up the stairs to his floor "great more trouble just what I need" he sighed. With a small application of strength Peter pulled the entire door of its hinges using it as a shield he barged down the hall.
Bullets fired from all angles blasting through his make shift shield "this is my life now, at least I can tell Aunt May I kept up my iron intake" Peter raced across the hall driving his shoulder into the door, breaking it in two and hitting the pile of bound heroes in the middle of the floor.
"nice of you to drop by Peter" Rawhide chuckled "did you have a nice morning to?" he asked.
"shut up!" Peter snapped "there's like 12 guys with guns out there and they're shooting first asking questions later so any thoughts?"
"untying us might be the best start" Colt replied.
Bullets tore through room walls and door shattering the windows and splintering the wood. Peter quickly ducked to the floor and started breaking everyone's binds "Laura screwed us all pretty damn well" he snarled. Everyone was now free and racing for the window leaving their gear behind.
Sasha dropped to the ground and ran across the street just as the others followed after her "nice plan kid, were weaponless, on the run and now that brat knows everything about us!" James growled.
"I'm sorry ok!" Marek snapped back "I screwed up can we get past it now?"
Another bullet whizzed by their heads, they all turned to see Laura and her sisters racing from the inn. "damn it bolt!"
The team ran between the buildings running for the stables. Bullets kept filling the air and striking nearby buildings and posts "I'd kill to have my revolvers back" Rawhide panted as they rounded into the stables.
Peter and Marek slammed the doors closed before locking the hinges in place with metal rods and wooden beams.
"guys we have a problem, there's no back door" Sasha shouted.
And she was right, the only exit in the stables was the one they just locked and had a swarm of loaded guns crowding outside. They were trapped and defenceless as they waited for their end to come.
the doors rattle and banged as the Marshals and Winchester sisters tried to force the doors open. Peter leapt onto the cross beams looking for another way out, he was panicking if he didn't figure something out soon his friends would be arrested and possibly hanged. "come on Parker think there has to be a way out of this" he muttered to himself.
"who the hell…" The outside burst in gun fire, at least 15 shots were fired in only a small window of time.
The team heard the shots and then nothing until a strange orange glow lit up under the door, a fire was growing on the other side. The doors began rattling, violently, 5 skeletal fingers engulfed in flame slipped between the door and began to pry.
The doors separated exposing a skeleton dressed as a lawman but engulfed in flames "black mask Marek…you're a very wanted man" the skeleton chuckled.
"holy crap it's Skelator!" Peter cried
Marek stared in awe at the skeleton in the doorway for a brief moment before a smile formed, "devil damned Slade took you long enough to get here" he laughed back.
"ha-ha sorry kid had some business in Mexico, Devil wanted a contract retrieved…" Carters eyes lifted towards Peter "he why you summoned me?" he asked.
"yeah, sorry Carter but I need the sceptre to send this kid home"
The fires faded leaving a normal middle-aged man standing in the doorway "small but simple problem… after our last trip I smashed the sceptre into pieces and cast the stones into a river"
"how is that simple problem?" Sasha shouted.
"the river is only a short ride from here, a little hell fire will re-forge the sceptre"
"so I'm going home? Awesome" Peter cheered from the rafters.
Bodies littered the ground in front of the stables, including the Winchester sisters, Laura lay toppled over the horse trough with Peters revolvers submerged in the water under her. A small surge of guilt arose within Peter as he looked at her, she looked frightened with a single bullet hole where her heart used to be.
"you know even though she did betray us I still did like her when she was on our side, guess you really can't tell what people are like"
After retrieving his belt Peter followed after the others.
The river was close just like Carter said but despite his best efforts he never panned out any pieces of the broken sceptre anywhere along the river bed. "damn it! Some ones found them already"
Peter withdrew the stone from his pocket in hopes of talking to Ava or even Johnny but the stone wasn't reacting for the moment it was just a bare stone. "what kind of piece of junk Johnny and Ava can reach from the future but when I want to reach out the line goes dead! What a load of crap!"
He threw the stone to ground and went to sit by the fire where Colt was working on cooking lunch, which was actually breakfast. Sausage, eggs and bacon with fried onions. Peter took his plate and sat on the log next to Colt
"getting home sick?" colt asked.
"yeah a little bit I think its just because I was so close to going home" Peter replied
"hey! Who found this?" Carter hollered holding up the stone Peter threw "who found this and where? It's part of the sceptre!"
"I found that back in the city" Peter spoke up "some guy was trying to sell it as gold because it was glowing green"
"Green? It was glowing green?" Carter gasped "did he say anything about hearing voices?"
"no but I did. I heard a friend of mines voice and again on the train but the lines gone dead."
"it's not dead, the sceptre works by transporting through time, but since it's been shattered it acts as a communication link requiring two people to be holding a piece at the same time by the sounds of it your friends have found the sceptre in another time. Anyway which store was the prospector in?"
(present day)
Johnny sat with Reid Richards in his lab watching the sceptre bake in the fusion reactor hoping it would fuse the broken stones back their whole form. While Fury stood farther back watching the experiment.
The young heroes were sent out to distract themselves and stop annoying him. if this was going work the sceptre would have to be locked away where no one, except proper authorities, could examine it.
The sceptre began to glow red with the heat "it's working!" Johnny cheered, the stones kept glowing but weren't melding together like they were supposed to be.
"this isn't right the stone fragments aren't fusing" Reid said. He increased the heat another 1500 degrees but still no avail.
Carter had collected the stones from the prospector and lined them up in their whole form "ok kid add the stone you found and I'll re-forge the sceptre then you can go home"
Peter placed his stone on the table then backed away "suppose this good bye then?" Colt asked "nice meeting you kid, it's been one crazy adventure since you've come around"
"yeah really fun getting shot, held captive, wreaking a train great fun" Rawhide added.
"yeah you weren't a complete pain in the ass despite the fact you never shut up" Sasha added.
A wave of hellfire erupted around the stones it burned bright and hot for several seconds then burned out leaving the sceptre in its whole form floating in front of Peter as was a glowing red bullet.
"when you get home kid use this bullet to destroy the sceptre, it can't be allowed to remain in the world as it is, its too easy to alter time with it" Carter warned "the bullet is concentrated hell fire it'll destroy it"
Peter nodded then grabbed a hold of the sceptre "well guys it's been awesome and I've learned a lot from all of you, thank you all for your help…"
Lightening shot from the sceptres head as the hour glass began flipping faster and faster in place, the wind began circle around Peter raising the sand at his feet in a vortex. Clouds darkened over head and finally another bolt of lightening shot out striking Peter in the chest. In a blinding flash of light Peter had vanished from sight. Leaving only the sceptre laying in the dirt
"well that was quick" Marek said.
(present day-Kansas)
The clouds darkened over a business district bringing hurricane winds and a steady down pour of rain as lightening shot across the sky. A small swirling storm of sand circled in a soaked alley flashing blue bolts of light before Peter appeared.
"awe man time travel really leaves you dizzy, I think I'm going to throw up…"
Peter wasn't long before noticing he wasn't New York although he was back in his era. Cars sped through the intersection and people ran for cover from the rain.
"ha-ha I'm home! I'm finally home!" Peter laughed "but where am i?" he asked looking around he saw restaurants and computer repair stores but no signs indicating where he was "great so I'm still lost" he groaned and made his way into a restaurant where almost instantly he drew all the attention in the room to himself.
"nice outfit kid out playing round up with sheriff woody?" the waitress asked with a playful smile.
"haha" Peter laughed "can I use your phone? It's been a long few days also, where am I?"
The waitress looked Peter up and down, he was dirty and smelled not to mention he looked like he'd been a wreak of some kind "sure thing cutie I'll get you some food first you look starved oh you're in Kansas"
She returned a few minutes later with a platter of onion rings and burger with an ice-cold pop and a phone. Peter wolfed down his food savouring every bite and sip before making his call.
"hello" came a gruff old voice "who is this and how did you get this number?"
"Fury it's me! I'm stranded in a place called pops burger joint in Kansas" Peter hurriedly whispered
"Parker? You're in Kansas? How the hell did you end up there? Is that where you've been this entire time?" Fury roared over the line
"can you send someone to pick me up? I smell bad, I'm tired and I really want to home" Peter moaned. "so please send a car or something"
"ones on its way kid but you have a lot of explaining to do"
"yeah, yeah I know just get me out of here please" Peter pleaded.
…
It was nearly midnight when a shield shuttle returned to the tri-carrier hangar bay where Peter disembarked to a waiting Nick Fury. "welcome home kid, nice look"
Peter smirked for once he didn't mind getting made fun of "hey Niki, don't get to close I know how get about wild west themed things" he laughed back.
"why did we miss you again" Fury groaned rubbing his eyes when a fowl smell hit his nose, it stunk of dead animal that was left in a desert sun for days "awe that is rank kid when's the last time you showered?"
"about 200 years ago" Peter replied as he headed for the showers he inserted his hell fire bullet into the cylinder of one of his revolvers then made his way into the showers.
The jet water massaged his body and washed away the dust and dirt that clung to his body it felt good getting to shower again even better having hot water this time. By the time Peter finished he found a clean set of his clothes on the railing his Arachnid kid clothes had been taken to be washed but his gun belt was left hanging on the towel rack.
He returned dressed in his civilian clothes except his belt around his waist when he saw his friends and Aunt May waiting for him "hi guys I'm home"