A/N. Hello! So I have some exciting news. I'm pretty sure I'm going to do a sequel to this story but it's not %100 percent confirmed yet. There is a poll regarding it on my profile so go there and vote! :D I can't wait for the results! Now I hope you enjoy the story :D And just a friendly reminder, a honestly don't own the Avengers ;)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

"Oh my God that's awful!" Tania exclaimed, a hand to her heart. Tony shrugged.

"At least Pepper didn't get sucked in with me."

"I guess… but what happened after that?"

"Well, I landed in some sort of dining room. It was huge, but not nearly as big as the one I have in Malibu," she rolled her eyes, he continued, "Anyway, I sit up and there's this guy standing over me smirking like he's… well, like he's me. Except, more evil. So he invites me to 'dinner' and after a few very clever quips, I sit down at one end of the exceedingly long table and he does the other. It's kind of hard to talk that way but I was as far away from him as possible. There was also absolutely no food in sight so I had no idea how he planned on having me over for 'dinner' without the actual dinner. He introduced himself as Neil and told me that he thought my arc reactor was very interesting. Naturally, I said that I was flattered but didn't like men that way. He rolled his eyes had his creepy spider thing knock me out. I'm still not quite sure how, I think it stole my paralyzer and stabbed me with it," he felt around in his back pocket for the weapon only to discover it was gone, "Yup. Thought so.

"So I wake up in the same chair, same room, same position, but I can tell from my internal clock that it had been several hours since I'd been unconscious. He seemed to be debating something but wasn't speaking loud enough for me to hear. I think it was some foreign language like Turkish or something. So yeah, he realized I was awake, interrogated me rather lamely, I told him nothing. He tossed me in here. And they all lived happily ever after."

Tania snorted. "I think you skipped a part."

"You mean the part where I break us out of here and save our asses so you can finally tell your star spangled man how you feel?"

"He's not my-!" he shot her a look that clearly stated that he wasn't buying whatever crap she was dishing. She sighed, "Fine. But how are you going to do that?"

"I haven't worked that part out yet but don't worry, I'm on the case."

"How?"

"What have you got?"

"Gum and lip gloss."

"Okay, well I have a pen and a napkin."

"Why do you have a napkin?"

"In case I ever get struck with an idea and need to write it down."

"Don't you have a Stark Phone or something for that?"

"Well yeah, but it's always good to have a back-up plan."

"You make back up plans?"

He laughed. "God, no. I just forget my cell phone in random places constantly and can't afford anyone else finding it and stealing my stuff."

"Okay… so how are you getting us out of here, exactly?"

"Well, I'm going to try and draw a map of what I remember on this napkin." Tony went to take the pen from the pocket of his jeans only to come up with a palm of black ink. He stared at it blankly. "How did I not notice that?"

Tania shrugged. "I don't know. Now what?"

"Hand me your lip gloss."

She did so and he began using it as a makeshift pen. It was hard at first and his writing was complete bubble gum pink chicken scratch, but Tony seemed to be able to read it just fine. That was all that mattered really. When he was done, he scooted closer to Tania, radiating body heat in the cold cell. He showed her the napkin and begin pointing out squares and circles.

"Okay, so this is the cell we're in now. This is the hallway. I came from this way, which has a corner where you turn right and then there's a door that leads to a foyer of some sort. After that, you head up the stairs on the left that spiral upwards to the second level and immediately enter the dining room with a balcony view of the foyer. Unfortunately, that's all I really know. In the foyer, there are these very large double doors that I can only assume lead outside. There were absolutely no windows in any place that I'd seen. Those doors are our only suspicion."

"Okay, so we go there. But there's still the matter of these bars." She glared at the metal poles criss-crossing her exit.

"Easy. Give me your gum."

She reached into her pocket and handed it to him. He popped one out and into his mouth, chewing abnormally fast. A couple minutes later, he reached into his mouth and removed the sticky wad. He crawled over to the bars and placed his arm through one of the diamond shaped holes close to the right wall. He bent his arm and felt around for the switch with his middle, ring, and pinkie fingers while the index and thumb held the gum. Eventually, he found it and stuck the gum to the switch, spreading it around haphazardly in the hopes of short circuiting it. But the second that the wad touched anything vital, Tony felt a powerful shock electrocute him.

And then just like that it was over, the pain was gone. It had come and gone so fast he hadn't even had time to register pain before he yanked his hand away and cradled it to his chest. Tania immediately crawled over.

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

He nodded. "I've had worse."

"I'm assuming it didn't work?"

"Congrats, Nancy Drew. You're a real detective!"

"So what now?"

Tony remained quiet, silently contemplating his option. He had been so confidant in that plan – in his only plan. He'd put all his hopes on that one little piece of gum, he'd put all his metaphorical eggs into one basket. And it had backfired on him. It was obvious that he didn't really know what to do next. She still had some gum left as well as her lip gloss and the napkin that was smothered in it, but other than that they had nothing. Not even a plan.

Accepting that they were stuck there for the time being, Tania sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder in resignation. He tensed at first, but relaxed easy enough and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Jesus, Tania, you're freezing."

"Am I? I honestly hadn't noticed."

"I would totally pull a Steve and give you my jacket but it just so happens that I don't have one."

She chuckled bitterly. "Oh well. Guess we'll just have to deal."

"We'll get out of here, Tania, I promise you we will."

"I'm not gonna let you make a promise you can't keep."

"But I'm going to keep it."

"Tony-"

"Just shut up and accept it Banks. I need incentive. I work well under pressure."

"Fine. But we better come out relatively unscathed." She was nothing if not realistic.

"Done."

With that, the two people whose names started with T leaned back against the ice cold wall and thought. Tania was curled into a ball at Tony's side, hugging her legs to her chest and burying her face into his shoulder. His legs were spread out in front of him and his right arm was slung across her shoulders in a vain attempt to give her warmth. It wasn't much, but it was something.

Time passed excruciatingly slowly for the two of them, huddled together against the rounded walls of their prison. Tony's eyes were glazed over and his eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. It was obvious how hard he was trying to figure out a way to get them out of there, but he appeared to be coming up blank. Tania was going over strategies and such in her head as well, but mostly she was just praying that the other Avengers would come save the day.

She had total faith in her friends and knew they would do everything they could to get her and Tony back. The questions was, whether or not it would be too late. They had been sitting in the cell for hours just… sitting there. What did this Neil person plan on doing with them? Why not do it now? It was possible that he was waiting for the capture of the other Avengers to start anything. If that were true, then Tania wished to stay alone in the cell for as long as she could. She didn't want anyone else to go stir crazy along with them.

A few hours later (at least, that's how long she thought it had been), her stomach grumbled. She blushed and closed her eyes, pretending that it never happened. Tony, on the other hand, snapped to attention. Realizing how loud it had been, she blushed harder.

"Someone's hungry."

"No I'm not." She argued feebly.

"Yes you are."

"So what? It's not like we have any food."

"There's gotta be something-"

"Like what? Gum? Lip gloss? The carpet over there?"

"You could just chew some gum-"

"I won't swallow it if that's what you're implying I do."

"I'm not, but the taste might get your mind off it. It's kind of like tricking your mind into thinking you're eating."

She paused for a while. "I guess…" she hesitantly removed the pack from her pocket and popped a piece into her mouth. After a few chews, she spoke up again. "Happy now?"

"Not really. I'm starving. Pass me some."

She tossed it to him and he caught it with ease. He took one and handed it back to her. There were only three pieces left. She stuffed it in her pocket and leaned her head against his shoulder. "I'm gonna sleep mmkay?"

She was gone before she heard his answer.

She awoke to the sounds of metal screeching. At first she thought it might have been some sort of weird alarm, but then she remembered where she was and her eyes snapped open. She was still snuggled up next to Tony in the cell, but there was something different: Neil was there, and so was Thor. The thunder God lay unconscious in front of the bars just as they started closing. Neil smirked, obviously pleased with himself and what he had accomplished.

Tania bolted up and ran for him, slamming into the bars rather harshly. "Neil!" she cried, anger seeping through her voice. He raised an eyebrow, signaling that he was listening. "What do you want from us? Why are we here?" she demanded to know.

"Because, my pet," she grimaced, "you are all my guinea pigs."

"Guinea pigs?"

He chuckled. "Why yes."

He apparently wasn't going to elaborate any more. She tried a different tactic. "Where am I supposed to take a piss?"

"Oh!" he clapped his hands once, "Of course. What kind of host does that make me? Here." He pressed a button on the wall she couldn't see. She heard the sounds of machines whirring behind her and she spun around. A bucket had emerged from the wall. She whirled around to face Neil again – only to find that the hallway was empty.

She sighed and turned. Tony was still asleep, not having stirred during the entire encounter. Thor was lying on his stomach, breathing deeply. She kneeled down next to him and inspected him for injuries. He seemed unharmed. His hammer was nowhere in sight but he was dressed in full battle armour, cape, chest plate, and all.

She brushed the hair from his face. He did not seem peaceful, but he wasn't tossing and turning either. There was a small circle indent in his throat; it looked like a needle had punctured his skin. It must have been a dart of some kind. She swallowed a large lump in her throat. If this man could create a dart that knock the God unconscious, then he was obviously very very intelligent. He was probably a mad scientist of some sort.

She reached out and made to remove his cape when his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist in a vice-like grip. She cried out in shock and Tony jumped awake.

"What? Where's the fire?" his eyes swept the entire room until they landed her and a very wide-eyed Thor. The tallest Avenger let go of her wrist and sat up immediately.

"I apologize Lady Tania. I knew not whether you were friend or foe." He looked around at his surroundings, "Where are we?"

"It's a prison cell." She stated, eyes dark.

Thor frowned. "Worry not Friend Tony and Lady Tania, I shall relieve us of this prison." He held out his arm straight to the side as if waiting for a high five. Nothing happened. Confused, he flexed all his muscles (damn…) and bent his fingers.

Tania blinked. "Um, whatcha doing?" she questioned curiously. Maybe that dart had more effect than she thought…

"I am calling Mjolnir. However, it seems that it is blocked by something."

"Mlowneer?"

"It's his mystical hammer that attends to his every beck and call. Basically if he calls for it then it shows up no matter how far away." Tony explained, "Did I get that right, Point Break?"

"Yes, however it appears to be very far away. I can feel its energy coming towards me, yet it is moving very slowly and is not close."

Tania's eyes widened. "If it's so far away… then… where are we?" she looked at each Avenger who, in turn, looked at the other two. No one had an answer. What if they were across the ocean on another continent? Steve and the others would never be able to find them. She could feel the tears prickle her eyes but she forced them back.

"Thor… where is your hammer?"

"Last I saw, it was on the ground in front of Avengers Tower."

"What was it doing there?"

"Well…"

Thor dropped the couch in frustration. It clattered to the floor among the shattered glass, its wooden legs splintering. He huffed. Another thing broken in such a disastrous chamber. He looked around the kitchen he had searched unsuccessfully for more clues. It had been AT LEAST twenty minutes since he was sent to look and the sun was starting to come up.

He didn't really know how technology worked, but much like Steve, he was a quick learner. So when JARVIS spoke up out of nowhere, the God didn't even jump. "Mr. Odinson, Ms. Potts and Dr. Banner request your immediate presence in the lab."

"Thank you mysterious voice." He nodded his head and strode to the elevator. He made it back to the lab less than a minute later. Bruce and Pepper greeted him there. Pepper was in hysterics and Bruce appeared to be trying to comfort her and failing. "What has happened?"

They both looked up. "They took Tony!" Pepper exclaimed, voice high and squeaky. She appeared to be in a state of panic but there was a surprising lack of tears.

Thor frowned. "Who is 'they'?"

"The spider! It came back and it… it sucked Tony into a miniature portal and then jumped in with him! The portal closed right after and I couldn't follow them and- and- I-" she took a deep breath but it didn't seem to help, "I ran straight here to tell Bruce."

"Where are the others?" Thor wanted to know.

"Steve is M.I.A and Clint and Natasha are still flying around the quinjet." Bruce answered solemnly.

"M.I.A.?" he questioned, confused at the acronym.

"Missing in action." The doctor explained.

"Do you believe he to be captured as well?"

"No, not really. The spider appears to be targeting the Avengers and everyone in the Tower. If Steve isn't in the Tower, which Jarvis has confirmed, then the probability of it finding him will be extremely low."

"So and the others are safe?"

"For the most part."

He nodded. "And this… spider. Will it return?"

"Patterns suggest that yes, it will return. We don't know its next target, but it appears to take anyone it sees-"

"It didn't take me." Pepper intervened, raising a hand as if she were still in school, "It could have kidnapped me before Tony got there, but it didn't."

"Well then it probably learned from its mistake last time. From what I know, Tania can't give them any vital information which suggests that the person behind all this doesn't want her, just the Avengers."

"If the person doesn't want her, then… you don't think…" Pepper whispered afraid of the answer. Bruce and Thor shared a look of doubt about what to tell her before returning their gazes to her.

"I honestly can't say, Pepper. It's very hard to tell."

There was a silence as they contemplated that statement. Could Tania really be… dead? Thor refused to consider the option. He focused instead on finding a way to get her back. "This portal, it gives off… radiation, yes?"

Bruce nodded. "That's correct."

"And Friend Tony said that it could be used to find the location of such magic?"

"We could trace it, yes. But with so little evidence, it will take a long time to do all the calculations and such."

"If you had more of this radiation, would the process become faster?"

"In theory, yes."

Then surely there is more radiation from Friend Tony's abduction. Could we not collect some more?"

Bruce's eyes widened. "Of course! Thor, you're a genius." He grabbed the case Tony had used earlier and ran for the elevator, Pepper trailing behind.

Thor felt a sense of pride warm his insides as he turned to follow them. On Midgard, he was not often considered "a genius". It was a compliment he did not take lightly.

When they reached the waiting room from before, Pepper almost had a meltdown… luckily she decided to stay outside and not disturb them. Bruce laid the machine on the floor and turned it on. As it spun faster and faster, Bruce shouted out, "DUCK!" before crouching himself.

Thor obeyed his comrade in the nick of time by diving behind a nearby desk. A small spark exploded electricity throughout the room and then it was over. Thor poked his head over the desk. He could feel his hair start to rise from his shoulders and he pawed at it frantically.

"What is this trickery?"

Bruce spotted him and chuckled. "It's called static, Thor. I'll explain it to you some other time." He examined the radiation analyzing machine (RAM) and gave a ghost of a smile. "I've got it. The leftover radiation is strong."

He packed up the case and headed outside with Thor at his heels. When they passed Pepper, she immediately followed. They headed back into the lab so many floors up and then Bruce got to work.

As he typed furiously on the computers, Thor shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. He was of no use in the technology department, but he wanted to help find this lost maiden who had been so friendly to him but a few days prior.

Seeing his fidgeting, Pepper spoke. "Thor, maybe you could get the reporters to leave us alone – at least at the front door. I'm sure you could do more than scare them away should the need arise."

Content with being able to help in some way, Thor nodded before exiting the room. In the elevator had already ridden at least five times that night (or morning now), he contemplated how he was going to make the obnoxious paparazzi go away. But when the doors opened and he spotted the annoying people trying to break in, his eyes narrowed and he knew exactly what to do.

He strode over to the glass doors of the front entrance and shoved it back, making sure not to let it shatter beneath his strength. They swung back and pushed all the reporters to the side, making a clear path to the outside. The doors closed behind him and whirled on the annoying people trying to impose on his second home (or third if you counted Jane's place).

His glare kept the puny reporters at bay as he spoke. "You have no right to be invading our privacy. You are all petty and disrespectful humans who cannot handle the consequences of such actions. I suggest you leave now or face the wrath of the Son of Odin." He raised his arm as if to call his mighty hammer.

Despite not knowing that, the paparazzi fled in a scurry of panic and fear. Thor lowered his arm and chuckled. He never had any intentions of hurting the humans, only of scaring them away. Job complete, he looked around aimlessly.

A few tiny crumbs of glass lay on the ground, having exploded upon impact from such a dizzying height. He knelt and inspected the shiny substance without touching it. Despite being incredibly strong and virtually unbreakable, he didn't want to cut himself on the sharp pieces of evidence of Tania's kidnapping.

With nothing to go on, he sighed. Then something moved out of the corner of his eye. Normally, something moving outside in the bustling streets of New York City wouldn't catch his attention, but this was different. Something in his gut told him to look and he thanked it when he spotted the mechanical spider back for more.

It was creeping along the walls of the Tower, waiting for the doors to open from someone else coming into the skyscraper that represented the Avengers' coming together. Gritting his teeth, Thor held out his hand, calling his hammer to him for real. Mjolnir appeared out of nowhere and zoomed into his awaiting hand. The second skin met metal a giant flash of light blinded anyone who was watching. Thunder crackled once in the sky above and then it was over. Thor stood in full battle armour, hammer clutched tightly as he prepared himself for battle.

He pointed Mjolnir at the spider who was staring at him. "Foul creature, thou shalt feel my wrath!" he lunged for the arachnid who deftly leapt out of the way. The hammer smashed the glass door to pieces from his brute strength and he spent but a moment regretting such a rash decision. He didn't have long to ponder as the little spy had now jumped onto his back and encased his throat in some sort of string that wasn't very powerful.
Thor ripped it off with a mighty roar and grabbed the spider before it could run away. He slammed it into the ground in front of him, causing the cement to crack. Miraculously, the robot rolled over seemingly unharmed, though its back was dented a bit. It looked up at him and shot something so tiny that the God didn't even see the projectile before it nicked his neck.

Immediately, he felt numb, so numb, that he only barely registered his vision turning red as he tumbled forward into unconsciousness.