Today was the big day.

Spider-Man swung towards Stark Tower, trying his best to calm his nerves. He's done some crazy things, sure, but nothing compares to this. He's fought off street crime, took on scorpion men, invaded a crime boss's tower with a killer, a mutant, and a guy dressed as a devil. Heck, he fought off an amusement park once.

But this? This was the big leagues. He never thought the Avengers would bring him along with this. He's going to another country to fight a dictator. The most powerful dictator in the world. The dictator that has constantly fought off the Fantastic Four, and thought nothing of it.

He was going to war. A secret war, to avoid all of the political debates, lead by Nick Fury, literally the most shady man who ever lived, to shut down Latveria's nuclear program. Because they have a nuke. That could kill everything.

Oh dear God, what was he doing here?

He was a teenager! He was a 16 year old kid, who just got his first girlfriend, and his job back. If anyone ever found out about this, if the government found out about this, they would hunt him down. No one would be able to help him. He would be arrested, unmasked in front of the world, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

He could only imagine the reactions. How his Aunt May would just die from sheer shock and embarrassment.

He could picture the headlines from the Bugle now. "Spidey a Crook, I was right!"

But he swallowed his fear, because this is what he needed to do. He needed to help the others. That nuke needed to be shut down. That was what he had to do. This was his responsibility.

He reached his destination, as he clung to the wall of Stark Tower, crawling up the side of the building to reach the balcony. He hopped over the railing, and looked around the living area of the tower, hoping to see someone. "Hello?" He called. "Private Spidey here, ready to wage war, sir."

"Ugh, kid, calm down," Tony called, as he suddenly rose up from behind the bar, bottle of liquor in one hand, as he propped himself up with the other. He was wearing an undershirt and sweats. "Tony's got a hangover. Ugh." He stood up, as he held his head for a second, before putting the bottle down on the counter. He then checked his watch. "Wow, you are here early. Eager to invade a foreign country?"

"Early?" Peter asked. "Cap said to be here at 8. It's 8."

Tony looked at the teenager, amused, as he just scratched his beard.

"What?" Peter inquired.

"You forgot about daylight savings time, didn't you?" Tony said, a smirk on his face.

"I..." Peter trailed off, as he suddenly remembered. Daylight savings time happened just the other day. "So, you're telling me-"

"You're an hour early," Tony stated. Peter just stared at him with wide lenses, before face palming. "Don't worry though, I have something cool to show you."

Spidey looked up at him. "Is it a phone that automatically updates the time? Because I need it, apparently."

Tony chuckled slightly, before wrapping an arm around Peter's shoulder and leading him to the lab. "I'll tell you what. I'll buy you a new phone when you get back from Latveria. How's that sound?"

Peter smiled at the man. "Sounds pretty good."

The two entered the elevator, as the doors closed behind them. The elevator went down, as light rock music played over the speakers. Noticing the strange choice in music, Peter took off his mask, and gave an intrigued look at Tony.

"Best elevator music ever," the Avenger stated.

"What band is this?" The teenager asked.

Tony raised an eyebrow at the wall crawler. "Seriously? Tears for Fears?"

"Never heard of them," Peter determined.

"Everybody Wants to Rule the World?" Tony implored, hoping that it would ring a bell.

"Nope, nada," Peter shook his head.

Tony sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. "I've never been more disappointed in you," he told him, as the elevator opened, and the two walked out into the lab, still disorganized beyond repair. "Seriously, I don't know if I still want to give you your present."

"I'm 16. Sorry I'm not an 80's fanatic," Peter said.

"You know Star Wars, right?"

"I know Star Wars."

"Then we're good," Tony said, as he directed his protégé towards a table with a cover on it. "Are you ready for the most amazing thing in your entire life?"

"Is Tom Hanks under there!?" Peter asked, jokingly.

"Ha ha. This is way cooler," Tony answered.

"Cooler than Tom Hanks? Impossible."

"Then I made the impossible," Tony quipped, as he ripped the cover off of the table, to reveal his gift.

A red and gold Spider-Man suit, the gold spider logo larger than it was on his normal costume, with it spread all the way to the back, connecting the two symbols together.

Peter stared at it, in awe. "What...is it?"

Tony, pleased with the expression on Peter's face, smirked in victory. "This...is the Iron Spider armor. Made with some of the fibers I use in my suits, it can survive extreme pressures, extreme temperature, it's bulletproof, aerodynamic, and has some pretty neat features."

"Like?" Peter asked, really excited, and totally geeking out.

"Here," Tony said, as he grabbed the suit, and then threw it right at Peter. The suit, in mid-air, opened up, and wrapped itself around Peter, putting itself on.

"Whoa!" Peter exclaimed, as the armor completely covered his body, attaching itself to his body, and putting a new mask on him. Peter looked at his hands, and studied the rest of his body, amazed. He looked at the mask from his other costume in his hand, seeing his reflection in the lenses, to see how the costume looked on him.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Tony asked, crossing his arms.

"Man..." Peter muttered, awestruck.

"Oh yeah, one more thing," Tony said, as he walked up towards his intern. He then pressed a few specific spots on his back, making four metal appendages pop out, startling the brunette, and knocking over a few things off the nearby tables.

"Holy-!" Peter gasped, as he observed the arms. He lightly poked at the sharpish tip of one of them, intrigued. "What are these things?"

"Iron Spider arms," Tony explained. "You can use them to crawl up walls faster and as weapons. Fun, right?"

"It feels a little...Doc Ocky..." Peter admitted.

Tony frowned. "His grabs stuff. Yours is more...pointy."

"Right. Still cool," Peter stated, looking at the suit once again.

Tony, proud of himself, looked at the boy. "Guess who's ready to invade a country?"

"Dammit Octavius, why are we waiting!?"

In an undisclosed base, somewhere in New York, Otto Octavius looked at his biggest endeavor to date. The villains he had been gathering, the enemies of his hated rival, were all sitting at a round table in front of him. Rhino, Scorpion, Mysterio, and the Vulture were all staring at him, anxious.

However, one person in particular, was a bit more jumpy than the rest.

"Electro, will you please calm down?" Otto politely implored.

"Calm down!? Here you are saying you have this big master plan, and we're just sitting here on our hands!" He yelled. "What's the frickin' point!?"

"Mister Dillon, we cannot rush this. We must wait."

Rhino raised an eyebrow. "Wait for what?"

Otto gave the large man a slightly disappointed look, before he started pacing around the table on his large, metallic arms. "The reason why we have gathered together, is because independently, we have failed against the spider."

"Yeah, no duh," Electro rolled his eyes. "Now we have the twerp outnumbered six to one! So let's just find him and fry him!"

"Patience, Mister Dillon," Otto stated. "Our mutual adversary is crafty, intelligent, and more over, has more friends now than he used to. I'm sure I'm not the only one who watches the news. Spider-Man is allies with the Avengers. And since I don't want to go against Captain America, we need to wait until we are sure he's alone, and that he's weak."

"What's going to make him weaker than he is now?" Mysterio asked.

Otto smirked. "While we are waiting, right now, he is out there. Defending the city from 'injustice', saving people from precarious situations, and everything in-between. Every time he goes out there, he gets more worn down, more tired, more weak. Meanwhile, we bide our time, and grow stronger." Otto kept pacing around his comrades, as their eyes were locked on him. "Gargan, I fixed your mind. Rhino, I gave you opportunities you could of only dreamed of before. Beck, Toomes, I helped improve upon your technology. And you, Mister Dillon..."

Doc Ock gently wrapped on of his metal appendages around Electro's shoulder.

"I will give you the pleasure, of killing him yourself."

Electro stared at the mad scientist, before a wicked grin spread across his face, just imagining the prospect.

"Everyone ready?"

Nick Fury was in the living area of Stark Tower, seeing a sight that most people would kill for. Reed Richards, Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm, the Human Torch, Ben Grimm, the Thing, who all made up the Fantastic Four.

The first superhero family.

Next to Steve Rodgers, Captain America, Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, and Clint Barton, Hawkeye. They were three members of the Avengers.

Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

The greatest heroes of the planet, all geared up, all in their uniforms, and all standing side by side, ready for action.

"Where's Parker?" Barton asked, sorting his arrows around in his quiver.

Natasha looked at the American icon next to her. "You did tell him 8, right?"

Steve nodded. "I told him 8," he confirmed, as he placed his shield on his back.

Johnny scoffed behind them. "Ah, that's just Pete. He's probably stuck saving a cat from a tree or something."

Ben rolled his eyes. "He's still more punctual than you."

"Uh, hello? I'm here, he's not."

Sue walked up next to him. "That's because your big sister dragged you out of bed with a force field bubble."

Johnny rubbed the back of his neck, giving a stupid smile, as he knew he was cornered. Ben and Sue chuckled at the young man, as Reed watched his family's interactions, smiling fondly.

Suddenly, the elevator opened up behind them, making everyone in the room look towards it. Out of it walked Tony, who was still in his relaxation outfit, and a red and gold Spider-Man.

Johnny's eyes widened at the sight. "Whoa! Dude, that suit's awesome!"

The mask that was covering Peter's head retreated to his neck, exposing his face. "I know, right?"

Johnny laughed in glee at the costume's display, before turning towards Reed. "Can we get new suits?" He asked.

Reed furrowed his brow, as he looked at the younger man. "We don't need new suits," he stated. "Yours already has unstable molecules. There isn't much more we need to improve on."

"But they're soooo old..." Johnny whined.

"We got these ones just last week," Thing pointed out.

"I meant the design! I mean, look at how cool Peter looks. That's what a new design can do!"

"Actually," Tony interrupted. "That's what Stark tech can do."

"Can you make us new suits?" Johnny asked, making Reed look at the blonde, slightly hurt.

"Any color you want," Tony told him.

"White and black."

"Deal," he said, shaking Johnny's hand. Tony then looked at Reed, and stuck his tongue out, the stretchy scientist giving a disapproving look. Stark one, Richards zero.

"Ahem," Fury interrupted. "If we're done with the superhero fashion show, we have a madman to stop. Everyone, Quinjet. Now."

The others were all making their way towards the hanger, until Peter stopped, noticing that Tony wasn't moving. "Tony? Come on and get some armor on, I wanna kick a dictator in the face as fast as possible."

"Uh, yeah, kid, about that..."

"Mister Stark won't be joining us," Fury told the teenager.

Peter's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, what?"

"I'm not coming," Tony reiterated.

Peter was confused beyond belief, not knowing why his friend wouldn't come with them. "Why?"

"I'm...retired," Tony announced, as he walked towards his bar, getting a drink. He poured some liquid into a glass, as his back was to the young hero, the gaze from his eyes piercing behind him. He suddenly found it hard to face him, and he wasn't quite sure why.

"You're what!?" Peter exclaimed, not believing what he was hearing.

Tony went silent for a second, before taking a stiff drink. He turned around, facing the teenager again. "I'm done being Iron Man. I just can't do it anymore, kid."

"What kind of excuse is that!?" Peter asked, visibly hurt. "You think this is easy for any of us? Do you see any of us quitting?"

"Look, Peter, I know this might be tough, but-"

"But what!?" Peter asked. "What? We're about to go destroy a nuke in a foreign country that was made by a madman, and after you went out of your way to make sure I was part of this, and giving me this suit, you're going to just bail!?"

"Kid, I-"

"Do you see me quitting, even with everything in my life? Do you see Captain America over there quitting?"

"I'm not quitting, I'm retiring," Tony clarified. "There's a difference. I'm still giving support. Just not out on the field."

"Iron Man is a symbol," Peter suddenly stated, making the room go quiet, as the brunette stared tensely at the billionaire. "People see you, and they think that they can do anything, as long as they try. That's what people see when you fly by. That's why people love you. Not the money, not the sports cars, not the hot chicks. But Iron Man, and everything he represents."

Tony looked at his intern, and he could feel how disappointed Peter was at him. He knew that he'd have a hard time understanding his retirement, but he had to do it. For him. For his life. "Kid, that's nice and all, but-"

"But, but, but, but!" Peter mocked. "What's the but!? What's this super important but!?"

"But I-"

"But!"

"I just-"

"But!"

"I'm scared!" He blew up, making Peter silent, the rest of the room just staring at him. "I'm scared, ok!? You happy now!? I feel like people are targeting me, and the worst part is, I don't even know if I'm being paranoid or not! I go to bed hoping that Stark Tower's defenses are strong enough to hold out whatever wants to kill me this week! I pushed away Pepper to keep her safe, I had to break up with her, and she hates me! She hates me, and I just..."

Tony closed his eyes, lightly shaking his head. He opened his eyes again, staring away towards a wall, while taking a giant gulp of his drink. Peter was just looking at him, stunned at the emotional outburst. One that Tony Stark wasn't commonly known for.

"Look," Tony continued. "I want her back. I do. I want to try to get my life back on track. This tower will always be home to the Avengers. That will never change. And I'll help you and the others from here. But I can't put that suit on again. I just can't bring myself to do it."

Peter stared at his mentor. One of his role models. Ever since he could remember, Tony Stark had been a role model for his scientific side. But now...now Peter wasn't quite sure how to feel. "With great power comes great responsibility."

Tony looked at him, confused. "...what?"

"With great power comes great responsibility. Even if you might not want to, we have to keep doing this. No matter how difficult it gets, heck, especially because of how difficult it gets, we have to keep going."

Tony got an unreadable expression on his face. "Why?"

"Because we can," Peter answered, without hesitation.

Tony just stared at him for a few moments, before turning away from him, and started to walk away. "Not me. Not anymore."

Peter watched as the billionaire finished off his drink, before disappearing in the elevator. Peter absent-mindedly stared at the closed doors for a long moment, before he felt a comforting arm wrap around his shoulder. He looked up, to see Sue Storm, with apologetic eyes. She's been friends with him long enough to see when he was hurt.

"Come on, Pete," Sue said. "We have to go."

The two started walking towards the hangers, as the rest joined them.

"About damn time the petty drama ended," Nick Fury grumbled. "We have to make one more stop since Stark decided to put on his loafers and collect his pension."

Peter curiously looked at the director of SHIELD. "What are we getting?"

"Another pair of hands," Fury told him, as the group kept walking. Peter gave one final look behind him, as he joined the rest, ready to begin, and anxious to see what will happen.