Peter groaned loudly as he came to his senses. Everything was dark, but not so dark that he couldn't see, thanks to his enhanced sense of sight. It took him a few seconds to recollect what exactly had happened. And a few more to look around properly for any signs of life. Even in the low light he could make out three other moving bodies. Which was some relief, at least. He tried to stand, but felt a great weight against his back. Turning slightly he realized that it was a portion of the Mansion's ceiling, that had somehow made it's way to the bottom of the pit they where in.
He sucked in a deep breath, knowing he wasn't in exactly the best position to be lifting such a weight, but he had little other choice. He was otherwise immobilized, after all. He let out an audible grunt as he shouldered the entire weight of the section of roof on one side of his body while he put himself into a more proper lifting position. The stirring rocks and loud groans quickly alerted the other three people to his presence.
"Stay back!" he barked as one of them tried to approach. "I don't know if this'll hold..." he said as he willed his muscles to not spasm in pain. It took him a few minutes to get to a full standing position, where he could safely drop the roof behind him. It landed with a loud crash! Just like anyone would have expected it to. Now that he was free, he took a better look at the other survivors. There where three of them. It only took him a second to remember their names. Miles, Kamala and Olivia.
"Is everyone alright?" Peter asked as he regained the feeling in his arms. "Where's everyone else?" he said, with a quick pang of worry for Jubilee striking through his heart.
"Yeah," Miles replied, "but 'Liv's chair's toast. And I think I heard someone calling your name a few minutes ago. But They didn't respond when I shouted back." Peter spared the wheelchair a glance. Miles was right, it had been rendered completely useless by falling debris. The fact that the girl hadn't been hurt at all, aside from a scraped shoulder, was an absolute miracle.
"It's alright," Peter said with a casual wave of his hand. "I think I can carry her," he said as he quickly turned to face Olivia. "You don't weigh more than the ceiling, right?" he chuckled to himself as he looked for an exit. There was only one open to them, a small opening on the far left of the cavern they where trapped in.
"What happened?" Kamala asked aloud as Peter picked Olivia up and placed her over his good shoulder. He was very careful to not disturb any underlying injuries the girl might have, which given her emaciated state, was a distinct possibility. "was it an Earthquake?"
"Yeah," Miles replied, "It had to be. Though I've never felt one that strong before."
"I don't think it was a natural Earthquake," Peter replied as he sidestepped some debris. "Those usually have a telltale warning shake to them. I've been able to pick them up on occasion. Even the very small ones. This was more sporadic. Like someone detonated a nuke underground."
"S...so w...was...s it a T...T..Terrorist attack?" Olivia asked.
"Don't know, I'm afraid," Peter said as they neared the mouth of the tunnel that he hoped would lead to an exit to the surface. "it's gonna be a bit of a tight squeeze in here," he said as he was forced to turn sideways and shift Olivia's body around to better fit through. And because of how he contorted his body, he was able to get a fairly decent view of the two teenagers behind him. And he was able to notice some very distinct things about how they moved. Miles was very easily able to climb and vault over any obstacle, even pulling himself up without using a handhold. Much like Peter did himself every day while skimming across rooftops. And Kamala was able to contort her body at an impossible angle around several obstacles. He elected to not say anything to the two of them, however, feeling that it wasn't his place to comment on their personal lives.
That, and he was suddenly distracted by a tiny speck of light up ahead. An otherwise completely smooth wall was in front of them, save for a large, metal door. The wall was made of pure concrete and the metal was far to bright to be anything but Vibranium. But there was just enough of a crack underneath the door for small specks of light to escape through.
Even more interesting was the small palm scanner just to the left of the door. Now he knew exactly where they where.
"Jackpot!" he said as he reached out to the palm scanner, which activated it.
"Hello, Spider-Man," J.A.R.V.I.S.'s voice said the second he touched it. "I am glad to see your are alright."
"Yeah," Peter said, "Me too. Can you open this door for me?" he asked.
"Of course," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied, "Under normal circumstances my Programming would not allow you access to this vault without Mr. Stark's approval. However you appear to be in need of some minor medical aid and there is a situation outside that you must be appraised of." J.A.R.V.I.S. said as the solid Vibranium door opened up, temporarily blinding him with the light inside.
"Just perfect," Peter quipped as they stepped inside. "What happened, exactly?" he asked, and he took a moment to take in his surroundings. They where in the deepest vault of the Mansion, possibly the most secure place on the island, the fabled Hall of Armours. Every Iron Man suit ever created, save for a select few, was on full display for all to see.
"Unknown," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied.
"Great," Peter muttered, "can we get a ride to the top?" he asked, knowing there was an elevator that could take them topside.
"Negative," J.A.R.V.I.S. said, "Due to structural damage to my core hard-drive systems, I am operating at only 34% capacity. I have no access to any elevator, communication, defence or security systems, Spider-Man."
"Perfect, Peter replied as he mulled things over in his head. There was an elevator shaft on his far left, which he could theoretically climb up, carrying one person at a time. However he didn't like the idea of leaving two young people unattended after such a natural disaster, even if it was in such a secure room. "Just perfect. Any more good news?"
"Yes." J.A.R.V.I.S. replied, "Captain Rogers and Thor engaged an unknown threat of unknown origin before all communication to the Mansion went silent. The occurrence coincides perfectly with the earthquake which damaged the Mansion grounds."
"S..so th..they're l..link...ed?" Olivia stuttered.
"No doubt," Peter said as he continued to think. He wasn't so sure that He'd be able to climb the wall while safely carrying Olivia, with her constant, jittery movements. One wrong move and she'd fall to the floor, which would kill her on impact. "Jarvis, there's gotta be something you can do here, right? Can you pilot one of the suits to carry us up there?"
"Negative, Spider-Man," J.A.R.V.I.S. said flatly, "My programming forbids me from using the suits in such a manner unless lives are in immediate danger. Your lives are not in danger at this moment. Furthermore I have no access to the mainframe which would allow me to remote pilot the suits."
"Damn," Peter said with a shake of his head.
"'Liv!" Kamala said, "why don't you do...the thing and get us out of here?"
"N...n..no I c...c..can't...t," Olivia replied as she shook more violently than before, catching Peter's attention. "I...I c...c...an't." she repeated.
"Can't what?" Peter asked, "if you've got something that can help," he said as he looked to the three young people with him. In the back of his mind, he felt that he knew what they might be alluding to, they where just to afraid to admit it to him. Which he understood, and wouldn't have pressured them to say anything under normal circumstances.
"I...I'm n...not s...s...u...sup...pos...ed to!" she protested vehemently as she flailed her arms through the air. As she flailed her arms, she brought them down hard against any surface within reach. And in such an emaciated state there was no question that she'd wind up hurting herself pretty badly. "H...he'll kn...kn...ow I d...did it!"
"'Liv, he won't!" Miles protested as he skirted around Peter. "He won't know, alright?" His words seemed to fall on deaf ears as she continued to protest, now reduced to incoherent words. Completely out of the loop, Peter looked to Kamala for an answer.
"She's afraid that her Dad will know she, um," the Muslim girl said with pursed lips as she searched for the right words. "her Dad is very, um, pro-human." Peter understood immediately what she was getting at, as it confirmed his little theory about the three in part. "It's a trigger for her."
"I understand," Peter nodded as he thought about how to approach the situation. He couldn't be too demanding, that would be detrimental their situation. But he also couldn't be too passive about it, because he needed an answer. So he did the best he could and put himself into Jessica's mindset, and was calm, helpful, direct and caring at the same time.
"I...I...c..can't..." Olivia continued to sob uncontrollably as Peter approached.
"Hey," he said in a low tone as he bent down on one knee, becoming eye-level with her. "Hey, listen to me," he said in a soothing tone, catching the teenager's attention. "I get it, you're scared right now. I get it, I do. You're scared of being judged for something beyond your control. I've gone through that, and it sucks. But here's the thing," he said as he noticed a distinct shift in Olivia's movements, they suddenly became far calmer and less jerky. Which he took as a good thing. "what you're afraid of, whatever it might be? The only thing giving it power over you is yourself. You can't let your own fear define you. You have to fight it." Olivia stopped shaking altogether as she stared deeply at him. "I need you to do that for me right now. I need you to not be afraid of yourself, so that I can help my friends out there," he said as he pointed to the ceiling. "can you do that?" he asked.
"Y...y...e...yes," Olivia replied with shaking shoulders. "I...I...n-need to t-touch...that..." she said as she pointed to the scanner on the wall, which doubled as a hub for J.A.R.V.I.S. From there they could access all sorts of systems. Although Peter wondered just exactly what Olivia was going to do, as J.A.R.V.I.S. had already claimed that he had limited access to his own systems. But, since their options where limited, he obliged her, and carried her over to the wall.
"What exactly-?" Peter asked as Olivia placed her hand against the hub, which suddenly sprung to life. A plethora of mathematical symbols ran across the screen, almost to fast for him to see, let alone understand. But he did catch onto what was happening fairly quickly. Olivia was some sort of Technopath! Within seconds the elevator doors slid open, revealing a fully functional elevator inside. "Get in," he said, motioning to the others, who needed no prompting.
Although the Elevator operated normally, it was not a smooth ride, as Peter soon found out. It's ability to function was a direct result of Olivia's powers and concentration. And he noticed that she was straining heavily to maintain control of the elevator as it moved. He didn't want to know what would happen if she lost her concentration for even a few seconds. He could not have been more relieved once the elevator doors slid open once again.
Now they where in what remained of the Quinjet Hangar Bay, which was still one level below street level, but it was a definite start. The second that the three of them stepped out of the elevator, it shut off and began to fall rapidly to the ground.
"Thank god we weren't in there," Peter muttered as he led the group across the Hangar, towards an exit. Only for something to dash across his peripheral vision. "Hold on," he said cautiously, "take her," he said to Miles. Something was definitely wrong, it wasn't shadows playing with his imagination.
"What is it?" Miles asked.
"I don't-"
"LOOK OUT!" Kamala screamed at the top of her lungs. Peter had just enough time to push the three kids out of the way of five rampaging creatures that ran on all fours. In the low light, Peter could only make out their basic features, which included long snouts filled with sharp teeth and long, dangerous claws on their hands. Perfect, he grumbled internally.
"Run!" he ordered, "run, now!" he snapped as he kicked one of the creatures in the face, stopping it from ripping off Miles's legs. He grappled with two more of the creatures, flinging them against the wall before webbing up the fourth and fifth. "There's the exit!" he shouted as the first creature got back on it's feet, and tackled him from behind. It's long claws cut deep into his shoulder in the seconds it took him to shake it off.
"AHHH!" Kamala's piercing scream filled the room as two more creatures appeared by the exit door, blocking their path. Peter sprang forward and knocked one of them back with a powerful flying kick. The creature flew back hard enough into the wall that it cracked under the pressure. Peter spun around with his momentum and struck the other creature in the chest, sending it sprawling back.
"Up two flights of stairs, then left!" he barked desperately, "don't stop, whatever you do! I'll-!" He didn't get to finish his sentence. He was struck in the back of the head by a greasy, black blob that caused him to lose his focus. He could feel that something was wrong. Something wasn't right. He couldn't think straight.
What is wrong with...us?
...xxXxx...
"How much farther?" a squeaky voice asked from the dark tunnel, which was only dimly lit by the energy Jubilee let loose from her left hand. Enough for them to see from, but not enough to risk damaging the supporting walls.
"I don't know," she replied, trying to keep from sounding annoyed. That was the fourth time she'd been asked that question in half an hour. She'd hoped that the kids would have realized that if she had an actual answer for them, she'd have given it the first time. But she underestimated their understanding of the situation. Most of them had spent a good portion of the journey through the sewers complaining about not getting a phone signal due to the concrete. She'd been forced to restrain herself from bitterly reminding them that most phone lines where probably either dead or overloaded with frantic calls thanks to the earthquake. So their phones where going to be useless no matter what.
"What if that thing comes after us?" another voice trembled.
"We haven't heard it for twenty minutes," Mr. Connors replied, being the only other one who had a calm head on his shoulders. "whatever it was, it probably went the other way."
"Or maybe it was just some rubble," Jubilee offered, doing whatever she could to keep the students calm. "Falling rubble echoing off the walls and playing tricks on us," she continued as she climbed over a pile of rubble that partially obstructed their path. "The more we worry about it, the worse things will seem." That seemed to have a temporary calming effect on the teenagers, even if it did little to raise her own spirits. She had hoped that Peter would have caught up to them by now, because she was absolutely sure that he was strong enough to survive the building's collapse unscathed. He had survived worse, after all.
Something stirred to her left, gaining her immediate attention. At first she hoped it was Peter with the remaining three missing students. But her hopes where quickly dashed when she saw that it was Logan, the short, hairy brute that had semi-willingly joined the Avengers. And he looked about as glad to see her as she was to see him.
"What the hell happened to you?" she asked sarcastically as she eyed his many healing injuries.
"Had a fuckin' building fall on me, runt," Logan growled back as he brushed off some dirt on his shoulder. "You headin' for the surface?"
"Well duh," Jubilee replied. "Should be another quarter mile that way," she said as she pointed down the tunnel. "Unless it's caved in as well. You haven't seen anyone else, have you?" she asked, hoping for some news on either Hank or Peter.
"Yeah," Logan said as he jabbed a finger behind his shoulder, just as Hank McCoy stepped into the dim light. Some good news, at least. "No sign of Banner, though. What 'bout the bug?" he asked.
"We where separated when the building collapsed," Jubilee said. "The floor just...opened up underneath us. I haven't-" she took in a deep breath. She knew he wasn't dead, she didn't need any proof.
"We need to keep moving," Mr. Connors said as he stepped in. "I don't know who you are," he said to Logan, which was a rather brave thing to do, "but I need to get these kids to safety before something-."
"HHUU-RRAAGGHH!" a booming voice echoed through the tunnel, sounding too close for comfort.
"Run!" Jubilee barked as she started to push the students down the dark tunnel. Hopefully they where moving towards a way to get to the street level. Because if they didn't get there soon, they would all be in very serious trouble. "Run, now!" she yelled as she made sure there where no stragglers, and found herself running beside Hank. "Please tell me it's not-!"
"It's Bruce!" Hank shouted back, "I watched as...it took hold. It happens whenever he's stressed out...no control over-!" he was cut off by more loud booming sounds echoing through the tunnel. Whatever was chasing them was gaining ground fast. Luckily there was a ray of hope ahead.
"I see daylight!" one of the kids shouted from the front of the pack. Indeed there was a ladder which led to the surface. Without a word the students began to rapidly climb it, with the Avengers bringing up the rear, ready to hold off their pursuer if necessary. Fortunately that wasn't necessary, and they where able to climb up without any difficulty.
But once she got to the surface, Jubilee almost wished that she'd stayed below. Because things where even worse on the street than below it. It was absolute chaos everywhere she looked. People where running, screaming as buildings around them crumbled to the ground. And strange reptile-like creatures bore down on innocent civilians in a mad whirlwind of destruction. They had to keep moving.
"There's a bus!" one of the kids shouted. And he was right. A city bus was parked on the side of the street with it's lights still running. It looked as though the driver had abandoned it in a mad attempt to escape.
"Everyone on-board, now!" Mr. Connors barked as they all made a beeline for the bus. But something caught Jubilee's eye. A dark blue blob of goop crawled across the ground rapidly towards their position. She was just about to shout a warning when the goop flung itself into the air and splattered itself all over Connors, who let out a terrible scream as he fell to the ground, writhing about as the goop spread over his body, transforming it. His face stretched out, becoming almost reptilian as a thick tail shot out from his back and he grew to twice his previous size. Students began to run and scream as whatever Mr. Connors had become took a swipe at the nearest body, sending it flying into the air as he let out a ferocious roar.
"What the fuck?!" Logan growled as he extended his claws. There wasn't any time for a proper response, as the now Lizard-like Mr. Connors charged forward and attempted to bowl the three Avengers over, but they where too fast for him. Jubilee jumped to one side, while Hank and Logan jumped to the other, out of his way. Connors spun around, however, and lunged again at Logan. He received a face-full of claws instead, however.
As this was happening, more goopy blobs appeared out of nowhere and began latching themselves onto whoever they could reach. And each victim was transformed, just as Mr. Connors had been. Only they where each different and unique in their own ways. But each was still very dangerous, dangerous enough to almost overwhelm the three Avengers. Almost, but not quite.
Hank was the first to move, as he became a blur of motion that sprung between opponents as he lashed out with quick, powerful strikes. Nothing could seem to touch him, though not for lack of trying. He easily sailed past most of the blows aimed in his direction, only receiving a few glancing strikes at most.
Jubilee on the other hand, was much less agile with her movements. Instead she went about blasting away individual threats with blasts of multicoloured energy. She picked her targets carefully, taking them down one at a time. And when it came to larger groups that clustered together she picked up whatever handheld debris she could find, charged it up with energy and tossed it like a grenade, which would explode in their midst.
Logan, however, seemed to be the most at-home in the current situation. He practically threw himself at his foes in a crazed frenzy as he hacked and slashed his way through them. Somehow while not killing anyone, just leaving his foes severely injured and unable to fight. He however, was still unable to overcome the corrupted Mr. Connors, who's size dwarfed those around him, and who continued to fight despite the combined efforts of the three Avengers.
At least until a new challenger appeared. One who dwarfed all present.
"Hulk smash!" a lumbering, muscular green titan roared violently as it burst out of the ground sending bits of debris flying into the air in a shower of rubble. Whatever news reports she'd seen of the Hulk did little to properly capture the sheer monstrous aura that surrounded him. Sheer anger seemed to pour off of him as he stared down the lizard-like Connors, even as he held another infected individual in one hand. No doubt the Hulk could easily crush any of them without a second thought. But the only one who did not seem to understand this was the infected Connors. He let out a powerful roar that shook the ground as he charged forward. Only to be matched tenfold by the Hulk, who tossed his current foe aside in order to mash his fists into his new enemy.
It quickly became apparent that the Hulk was more than a match for Connors. He was simply stronger and more vicious, while Connors was only slightly faster. But not fast enough to avoid having his tail grabbed by the Hulk, who then proceeded to hurl him into a nearby building with violent force.
But watching the brawl cost Jubilee a few precious seconds of attention. Which was enough for one of the blobs of goop to launch itself directly at her face with enough force to knock her over. She yelled and screamed as she clawed away at her face, trying to pull the gooey creature off before it turned her into some kind of monster. But try as she might, she struggled fruitlessly.
But something unexpected happened. The black goop turned grey as it let out what she could only describe as a scream of pain before dropping off of her face and onto the ground. Leaving Jubilee completely unscathed. She rolled back to her feet and looked over at the pile of goop that had attacked her. Only now it looked more like grey dust.
"What the hell?" she muttered, wondering just what the hell was going on, and why she hadn't been affected by the creature. She didn't wonder for long, however, as she was forced back into the present moment. Connors returned to the fight, charging straight for the Hulk, and she happened to be in-between the two of them. But not for long, as she dived out of the way and blasted Connors in the side. Which proved to be a huge mistake, as he turned his attention from the Hulk to her. And she had nowhere left to run. He was just about to swipe at her with a massive, clawed hand when something even larger struck him from the side with a vicious roar.
...xxXxx...
Jessica practically collapsed to her knees the second she hit the floating aircraft carrier's upper deck due to sheer exhaustion. She had dozens of cuts and bruises all over her body, but she was still far better off than Thor was. She had no idea why he was still even standing, let alone eager to return to the fight.
At least a dozen heavily armed men surrounded Thor, Pepper and herself, with rifles aimed directly at their chests.
"This area is off-limits to civilians," one of the men barked.
"Try me, mortal," Thor hissed threateningly as he raised his hammer up, and there was a loud crash of thunder int he background. "if thou dares." The men seemed slightly shaken by this, but they didn't falter. They only moved when prompted to by a hoarse shout from behind.
"Stand down, Agent Rumlow!" a rough voice snapped. Jessica peered over the men's shoulders to see four figures approaching. They where Tony Stark, Charles Xavier, Nick Fury and, she realized with a clenched fist, Stephen Strange. A supposed Sorcerer who'd swindled her family out of a lot of money without a care in the world. If she wasn't so tired from the day's events she'd already be in his face, screaming. "We've got enough problems as it is. Now all of you," Nick Fury continued fiercely, "get inside. We've got a briefing to run. Now."
The three Avengers stumbled forward, their injuries having taken their toll already. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Pepper and Tony walking with their arms around one another. She wasn't even sure who was supporting who at the moment, given how sickly the original Iron Man looked at that moment.
"Have you heard from anyone else?" Jessica asked Tony, unable to keep silent for very long.
"No," he replied with a slight cough. "No, we haven't. But according to police chatter, Hank, Jubilee and Logan all made it out of the Mansion," he said firmly, causing a lump to form in Jessica's throat. "But a few minutes ago, someone managed to hack their way through J.A.R.V.I.S.'s damaged systems in the lower levels." Jessica breathed a sigh of relief. There where only two Avengers smart enough to do that. And Peter was one of them. "but there's a problem-."
"Yes," Fury growled as they approached a heavy set of doors. "Someone decided to keep the Hulk as a house pet. And now he's loose in the city."
"At least we didn't kidnap any children," Pepper shot back venomously.
"That was a rogue section of S.H.I.E.L.D.," Fury snapped back as the doors opened. "And I wouldn't go slinging mud just yet, Missy. Not with all those skeletons locked in your family's closet."
"And is anyone going to address the elephant in the room?" Jessica asked as they entered a long, metal hallway. "Like just what the hell is going on here, and why the hell that con-man is here?" she snapped as she jabbed her head at Strange. Xavier and Fury exchanged a quick glance, but Tony stepped forward. Though 'stepping' was not what she would call his movements. More like barely stumbling while attempting to keep an imposing posture.
"There's a lot to explain," Tony said as he gestured for her to come to his side. "A lot to explain. But we need everyone here before we begin. Fury," he continued, "what's the status on my team's recovery?"
"Jean and Azari are already on-board. They arrived a few minutes ago," Fury replied quickly as they passed another set of double-doors. This one led them into a large circular room. It was mostly empty, except for two blonde uniformed agents standing on the opposite end of the room. There was something off about the two. They looked almost identical, aside fromt he fact that one was a woman and the other a man. They were also far bulkier than the average person could ever hope to be. Every inch of their bodies seemed to radiate power. "But We've got to wait for things to die down before getting the rest. I am not sending a shuttle down there only to get thrashed by the Hulk!"
"We need to divert our forces," Strange said as he pressed his palms together. "The Sanctum cannot fall, Fury. Once it does, there will be nothing preventing En Sabah Nur from arriving in person. And once he does-"
"Once he does, the Earth will be crushed under his foot," Thor said gravely as he shrugged Pepper off. "Tell me, Sorcerer, where is this abode of yours now? So that I may defend it with my life?"
"Hold it, Goldilocks," Fury interrupted, "you're not on defence. We need you on the offence. You're the only one here who knows what the hell's goin' on. And how can we stop the fine citizens of New York from being turned into space zombies?" as he spoke Azari and Jean burst into the room behind them, looking just as weary as they where.
"We got as many people to safety as we could," Jean told Tony immediately as she wiped the sweat and blood from her forehead. "But...a lot of people where..."
"I understand," Tony replied plainly as he shifted his gaze to Strange. "Doctor. That thing we talked about. I need it." Strange only nodded his head briefly, causing Jessica to wonder just what the hell he was talking about. Clearly the two men knew each other. And Tony also had access to both her and Peter's complete medical, and in her case, criminal, histories. So he should have known about the connection they shared with Stephen Strange. "Our first priority should be to secure the Sanctum."
"I agree," Strange replied, "it's defences are powerful, but not invincible. Given enough time, these creatures-"
"-the Klyntar," Thor corrected him.
"the Klyntar, my mistake, will overcome them. And once they do, they will be able to destroy the seal, and En Sabah Nur will enter this realm. After that," Strange said gravely, "there will be no stopping him."
"I will re-direct the Hellicarrier then," Fury grumbled as he mashed his hands together. "We can provide some close-fire support from here. We'll set up a perimeter. Stark, can you do anything on your end?"
"I have something," Tony said with a nod, "something I've been working on for situations like this. But We will be getting the other Avengers out of the line of fire before we do anything else, do you understand, Fury?"
"Grandpa," Pepper spoke up, "you're not going out there. You're not in any condition to-."
"Pepper, I want you to stay with the Hellicarrier. You're more nimble and better armed than any aircraft on-board," Tony ordered, shutting her up in an instant. "Jean, you're to stay here as well. I want you to coordinate us when we're on the ground. The rest," he said as he struggled against his cane, heading for the door. "With me. we're going to get our team out. Strange?" he said, beckoning towards the wizard, who nodded. Jessica followed him out the door, with Strange directly behind her, now holding a stone cup filled to the brim with a putrid-smelling liquid in his hands. Pepper, Azari and Thor made their way down the hall ahead of them, while Jessica remained behind.
"What the hell is that?" she asked as she pointed to the stone cup in Strange's hands.
"Is that it?" Tony said, oblivious to her question.
"It is," Strange nodded as he offered the cup to him. "Are you certain, Tony? There's-"
"I don't think you should-" Jessica began to protest. But before she could finish her sentence, Tony grabbed the cup with both hands and downed it's contents in one large swig. As soon as he was finished, Tony cast the cup and his cane aside, and walked down the hallway completely unaided.
"J.A.R.V.I.S! Launch project OMEGA!" he barked loudly as he continued down the hall, looking healthier by the second.
"What did you give him!?" Jessica snapped aggressively as she pushed Strange into the wall.
"Dragon's blood," Strange said calmly, despite her aggressive tone. "Enough to give any mortal man twenty-four hours of perfect, youthful health. At the cost of your life, once the effects wear off."