"Boss, Peter's tracker has stopped reporting its location."
Tony looked up from the suitcase he was packing and looked over at Pepper. "Last reported location?"
"On the subway coming from the hospital to the tower."
"Show me. And get Steve." Tony walked over and looked at the map of the subway showing where FRIDAY had lost Peter's signal.
"Tony, what's up?" Steve's voice echoed through the speakers.
"FRIDAY just lost track of Peter. In the subway coming from the hospital." Tony could hear Natasha in the background with Steve.
"We're headed your way. Keep us posted."
It would take Natasha and Steve about 30 minutes to get here. Maybe less if Clint was there and could fly them. Clint always managed to get more out of the engines than anyone else ever could. Tony suspected that had had bypassed all of the safety protocols. Right now he'd be glad for Clint's recklessness if it meant they could get to Peter faster. Tony looked at Pepper. "I want you, Morgan, and MJ in a secure location."
"Maybe something just malfunctioned in his watch." Pepper knew she was grasping at straws. They both knew the watch hasn't malfunctioned.
"FRIDAY, pull up the cameras in the subway. And see what what the train is reporting." Tony traced the tunnel system both ways. There were too many places along the path someone could hide. The cameras showed nothing out of the ordinary, but he hadn't really expected them to. There weren't enough cameras in the tunnels themselves to be of much use.
"The subway car Peter was in stopped moving 20 minutes ago." Tony frowned. If something had happened 20 minutes ago Peter would have triggered the panic button. He pushed it aside, he could figure out the signal issue once he found Peter. He looked over at Pepper. "Get MJ up here. I'll lock down this floor and use the door below as a command center." He hadn't torn out the ops center yet on Peter and MJ's floor. "FRIDAY, as soon as I leave and MJ is upstairs, lock down this floor."
"Boss...Mr. Morales just landed on the balcony."
Tony looked at Pepper. "Go get MJ." Tony walked out of the bedroom. "FRIDAY, open balcony door." He saw Miles pacing on the balcony. "Miles, this isn't a good time." Tony nodded his head towards the living room.
Miles looked up at Tony as he walked inside and pulled off his mask. "I saw someone take Peter. That's why I'm here." Miles chose to ignore the fact that Tony Stark has just called him by his first name. "I followed them through the tunnels. I know where they took him."
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Peter startled awake and immediately regretted the sudden movement. He had thrown both hands out to the side resulting in pain shooting up his left arm. He pushed himself into a sitting position with his other hand. Cradling his injured wrist against his chest he took in his surroundings. It seemed like he was in a jail cell. Using the wall to push himself all the way up he walked over and tested the bars. They didn't give when he squeezed. Ok...so not a normal jail cell. He tried to look down the hall but there wasn't a great angle and he couldn't see much. He could hear some muffled noises a couple floors up. Closing his eyes he listened. He thought there was somebody in the cell next to him. He could hear a heartbeat and breathing.
He thought back through what had happened on the subway. Basil had used gas to knock everyone out. He didn't think it was lethal. He actually felt ok except for the ache in his wrist. Basil wasn't the one that had squeezed his wrist. Peter couldn't remember seeing a face but he didn't think it was Zeke. Zeke was strong, but not that strong. It felt more like Steve or Bucky strength which meant probably one of Ross's super soldiers. Plus, his Spidey sense hadn't triggered which meant Basil was probably using the controller tech. He held onto one of the bars and kicked the bottom section. He still didn't feel much give. He tried another kick.
"You're not getting out."
Peter turned toward the direction of the voice. "Yeah?" He kicked the bar again.
"Son...that cell was designed for the Winter Soldier. The bars are coated in vibranium. You can't break them."
Peter gave the bar another kick as he thought through what the man said. 'Designed for the Winter Soldier'. Where the hell was he? "Who are you?" He heard the man move slightly.
The man chuckled. "Thaddeus Ross."
Peter stared at the wall separating them. "So, not getting along well with Zeke right now, huh."
The man chuckled again. "You could say that." He paused for a moment. "I underestimated how much he hates you and Tony."
Peter paused and looked at the wall. "He doesn't even know me."
"He doesn't have to. You have what he thinks he should have. He seems to think that if Obadiah hadn't been killed by Tony, he would have eventually acknowledged him and he and Obadiah would have what you and Tony have now." Ross sighed. "I underestimated his delusion. I thought I could use his genius to help me."
Peter shook his head. "To help you...help you do what?" He kicked the bar again.
"Help me rid the world of the mutant abomination. They're not human Peter." Ross stood up and walked to the wall he shared with Peter.
"You're just as delusional as he is." Peter stepped back to give himself enough clearance and leveled a side kick at one of the bars. He tested the bar with his good hand and actually felt a little give behind it.
"I've seen what those things can do. The Hulk destroyed so many lives. And now Hydra created a whole new threat with that terrigen drug. They're all unnatural and need to be held in check."
Peter laughed. "So you created super soldiers. Do you even see how ironic that is? You're creating the very thing you're trying to destroy."
It was Ross's turn to laugh. "They're a means to an end. And there's a difference between something created in a lab and something that doesn't have human DNA."
Peter shook his head. He backed up again and leveled another sidekick at the bar. Gripping it with his hand he definitely felt movement. "So what's Zeke's plan? Lure Tony here? Kill us both?"
"I'm not sure at this point. I am pretty sure he's planning to kill me, he just hasn't gotten around to it yet. All I know is that he'll wreck my plans if I can't stop him. I've pushed enough of the mutants to a breaking point where they're bound to lash out sooner or later. When they did, I would have a team in place, ready to take on the threat. Then, once the mutants were exposed, the world governments would have no choice but to look to me for help."
Peter backed up again and leveled another kick. He was making progress but it was going too slow. "What did you think the Avengers would do? Sit back and watch you wage a war?"
Ross laughed. "When Tony turned against me he lost an ally. The Avengers aren't quite the picture perfect hero's they once were. Even though they've managed to overcome the tarnish from Slokovia, they now have in their ranks not only the Winter Soldier but also that mutant witch and seem to be making an alignment with the rest of the mutants. You'll see that people don't like those that are different. The world will judge the mutants for what they are."
Ross's words disgusted Peter but he also knew there was some truth to what he was saying. "The world will probably judge them at first. We don't have the best track record. Between the concentration camps and internment camps in World War II and the entire Civil Rights movement in our county, people for the most part suck. But, like what happened after World War II and what you see now, those actions are condemned by just about everybody. You're on the wrong side of history Ross." Peter leveled another kick at the bar and felt the bar move. He backed up and got ready for another kick when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He paused and stepped closer to the edge of the cell. "Amanda?", he kept his voice low since he wasn't sure what she was doing.
She reached over and grabbed the bar Peter had been kicking. He watched flames surround her hand as the material melted. She moved onto the bar next to it and worked on creating enough of an opening that Peter could squeeze through. She nodded her head in the direction she had come from, indicating she wanted Peter to follow her.
Peter held up a hand and walked in front of Ross's cell. "You won't win."
Ross walked over to the bars. "You're stronger than anyone knows aren't you?" A grin spread across his face. "That means my soldiers should be stronger too."
Peter shook his head and reached over and broke the lock on Ross's cell. "I'm not letting him kill you like a caged animal." He started to move away but turned back. "You won't win. Guys like you never win."
Ross pushed the door open. "I'm not stopping my life's mission just because you freed me. It doesn't work like that."
"I'm not expecting you to. I'm letting you go because I'm not a killer. If I left you here to die I'd be playing a part in your death. What you do is on you. You go after the mutants and you'll have a war on your hands. I hope you're ready for it." Peter turned his back on Ross and followed Amanda down the darkened corridor. He heard Ross shout behind him before heading the opposite way.
"Are you ready for it Peter?"
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Steve walked over to the boy who looked like he was completely out of his element. He wasn't sure if he remembered Peter looking that shell shocked. Of course by the time Peter was around this many bigger than life people, he was a year or two older and had been working with Tony for a while. "Miles, you did the right thing. Getting to Tony to let him know where Peter has been taken gave us an advantage we wouldn't have had." He reached over and gripped Miles shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. "They'll all keep your identity a secret."
Miles looked around the room. He still couldn't believe he was in the same room with all of these people. He looked over at Captain America. "Do you think he'll be ok?"
Steve nodded. "Peter is tough. By your getting to us as quickly as we did we'll be able to get to him." Steve left off the rest of it. It had taken them 6 hours to get to Peter when Osborn had him. They were currently sitting at almost two hours now. The clock was ticking.
Steve looked around the room at the group that was assembling. A couple people were still making their way in. He had been strategizing an attack since they decided to make a frontal assault but it was a lot of people to coordinate. With the headcount they currently had, they would break up into four teams. As tough as it would be to coordinate, he was grateful for their number. Rikers was big. Tony had been able to narrow down the location by tracking Peter's radiation. What they had also discovered was that Ross had used the same radiation on his super soldiers. The amount being emitted was enormous. Tony estimated that Ross has 20 - 25 Super Soldiers at his disposal on top of Zeke's bio-enhanced individuals.
Tony and Rhodey were leading the air assault with Sam, Wanda, and Vision. The ground teams were the biggest concern. Steve had thought about assigning an Avenger to each team until Nat had reminded him they they already had Avengers with each team. The gas used on the subway wasn't long lasting so Bobby had been awake by the time Steve and Natasha had gotten to the subway car, He and Davis were with a group of from Professor X's school. He had met Jean and Scott previously. He had not met the third one but he was looking forward to getting to know him. He never thought he'd meet someone older than he was. Johnny and Wyatt would lead a team that included Ben, Sue, and Reed. They had known they would need Ben's help with Abomination. Sue and Reed had been a surprise. Tony had tried to talk them out of it, until Reed gave him a glimpse at his powers and assured him that they could handle themselves. Steve had the rest of the Avengers. He hoped that the sheer number would mean they could end this without casualties.
All eyes in the room darted over to a corner where an orange portal formed. Red cape billowing around him, Dr. Strange stepped through followed by Wong. Stephen looked at Tony as the portal faded behind him. "Are you ready?"
