I got up but I was too slow. My nerd butt got hit by another vibranium blast. Suit integrity dropped to seventy percent. In only two hits! I didn't have much time.

Only one choice now. Evasion. I leaped through the roof of that building I got b-slapped into and powered up the repulsors for the building Teresa was being held in.

They fired briefly... but then fizzled out. I yelled out as I crashed into the water. And like a stone I sank. I had plenty of air but those vibranium hits had disrupted my suit's interacting power core pathways.

"Boss; this isn't good." "Ya think!" I had her restart all systems. Sometimes a hard restart could help with that. It wasn't looking good though. Come on armor. Work.

It worked. About time! Not getting any younger here. I repulsed out of there in good measure. I reached the ground and landed; ready to fight.

They were all gone. What the? "Friday? What's going on?" "All baddie readings are... just gone boss." "Scan again." "Done. Confirmed." "Teresa?" "Peter!"

It was her! She was... free...? She ran towards me. I dissolved my helmet and hugged her readily. "Are you okay?" "Yeah. They just let me go and disappeared." "That doesn't sound right." She nodded. "I know." She pulled out a pistol and readied it.

We looked around. But we Parker siblings found nothing bad. What is going on here?

"Peter. Do you copy?" It was Rhodey on comms but his signal was bad. "Friday. Reinforce that." "Working." "Rhodey. Pete. What's up?" "I got Tony and the others. The baddies just left." "Huh. Same here. What's going on?" "No clue."

"Peter." "Tony. You okay?" "Yeah. I know what's happening now. And it's not just happening here. Check your hud."

I reformed my helmet. Oh god... Teresa "what is it?" "The Wakandans have been deployed throughout the us; and tanked the power grid." "On a national level?" "Yeah. Everything's on backup." Tony "not only that kiddo; but America is vulnerable now to enemy attack. China Russia; anyone."

Tony was right as usual. Anyone could hit us. Essentially we were being held hostage. How this was gonna play out was still anyone's guess.

Then, a Wakandan broadcast came on. It was from the Killmonger agents operating here. I generated a suit holo of it for Teresa to see as well. "America; you are an empire of evil no longer. Africa now speaks with one voice. Moreover, the great King N'Jadaka, has made a decree. All the world will be equalized like never before. Through his brilliant alliance with the demon Mephisto we've had our plans magically expedited. No more will hegemonic nations be dominant over others as has been history's chaotic pattern. Never again will Mother Earth suffer at the destructive hands of human greed arrogance and stupidity."

"To that end, all of earth shall be sent back to the Victorian age as it were. Even now, Wakandan and alien tech, arranged in advance by Mephisto via time travel and magic, will draw a massive solar flare to earth. Anything with an electrical component will cease to function forevermore. This natural emp will do what our own tech did to your city and nation, but on a global scale. Everything will now be different. History will forever thank the new kingdom of Africa and its capital Wakanda in the future for this great act. Be assured of that. Natural restoration and much more will occur. No more circular debates while earth suffers. Just righteous action. The old order now dies and true healing begins. Thank you; and all hail king Killmonger. Savior of the world..."

Sis and I just shared a mutual look of dread. Friday "boss; the solar flare is hitting the planet now..." we looked up and saw it. The lights around us went out. Cars in the distance just stopped.

"Boss..." "Friday?" My suit was powering down. I emergency dissolved it and pocketed the suit watch for all the good it would do. Everything around us went dark.

"Come on" said sis. "We gotta get back to Stark tower." "Lead on." She was the best qualified to save me now.

We moved out. Despite the sudden change in circumstances, and not in a good way, she managed to keep her bearings. I couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Panic and chaos started in the city right as we entered into it. People freaked out and melted down. This was not gonna end anytime soon.

The rage and violence started to. Teresa kept her gun out as she led the way. Soon enough mass mob violence started. Not good.

"This way!" Sis said and I followed her down an alley.

Before we got to the other end though a mob appeared there. Another appeared from the other end. If only I were Spider-Man right now...

The mob came at us. They were fighting each other too. Teresa's gun went up. "Stay back!" Still they came. She fired a round into the air. Some froze but others came. It was like they were in a trance or something.

Still they came. Teresa fired into a few to drop them. They were nearly on us now. Teresa threw me up against a wall and shielded me with herself. She killed a few more. Her gun ran out.

The mob beat on us good. I went down fast. Teresa did some fancy spy moves but she too was taken down soon enough. After a while the blows ceased to be a problem anymore.

The darkness was welcoming. Maybe uncle Ben was wrong. Maybe we'd join the dearly departed sooner than planned...

Xxx

I awoke some time later. I wasn't in the alley though. I was in an exam chair; and restrained. I looked around. It was indeed a candlelit lab I was in. I was beat up good. Teresa? Where was she? Where the hell was I?

"Get comfortable mister Parker. You're not going anywhere..."

I froze instantly at that voice. It couldn't be...

Yep. It was him. The fat guy that wasn't really fat. Matt's enemy more than mine.

There stood Wilson Grant Fisk; the kingpin. He smiled with a lit cigar in his hand. "We have so much catching up to do..."

As the real McCoy Hank would say: oh my stars and garters...