Waking up in a cell, chained to a chair, and a single light illuminating the three steel walls and what probably was a one way mirror was not what Black thought he would find when he regained consciousness.
Then again…
"Huurrrgh"
Throwing up right afterwards didn't help either.
"Fuck…where am I?" he muttered, spitting out the last of the vomit as he blinked to clear his blurry vision. He really needed to get a hand on changing back…he didn't enjoy throwing up his lunch every time. He ate from trash cans but still food was food.
Looking towards the mirror, Black blinked as he watched his body shimmer, revealing Firewall sitting in his place as the dragon looked directly at him. An annoyed growl making the teen confused, what did he do to piss off the cyber like dragon.
Trying to move his arms, Black suddenly realised that he couldn't feel any of his cards on him. His eyes widening slightly in panic at the thought of being unable to have one of the cards to help him out of…wherever he was.
A sudden clank of a lock drew Blacks attention to the door to the cell. Watching closely as a black skinned woman walked in, sporting a blue helmet like mask as a star red, blue and white shield on her arm.
Was that…oh fuck.
"So…I have a few questions for you son" Samatha wilson…the Captain America spoke, grabbing a chair from the edge of the room and sitting in front of the restrained teen. Resting her shield on her leg, as she leaned forward, her elbows on her knees as she watched the teen carefully.
"Ugh…" was all Black could respond wish as the woman quirked an eyebrow at him.
"Not what I was expecting honestly…but then again you don't see a golden monster transform into a teen who can't even order a drink for himself every day, am I right?" Cap said as Black was unable to speak.
The fuck was he suposed to say, this was captain america…and one wrong word and he was as good as gone.
"Right, lets start son, what is your name?" Cap asked as Black looked at her oddly.
"Why are you doing this, isn't an interrogation like for people under you?" Black asked honestly, curious as to why the Captain America was giving him her attention. The soldier only quirked an eyebrow at him before giving him a soft smile.
"Honestly, its because this needs to be handled with care and most agents in shield aren't used to trying to handle people with gifts," Cap explained as the teen nodded to her. "Now, what's your name son, we can get all this cleared up easily if your help us" she asked again as Black nodded.
"I don't remember my real name, I've been using Black since I woke up in an alleyway about a week ago I think" Black explained as the woman's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Okay, and what about that transformation of yours, I take it it had to do with those cards we found on you?" Black noticeably tensed at that question, something Cap took notice of as she waited for his answer.
"I…I don't really know how to explain it, I connect with the spirits of the cards and we kind of share a mind, it's hard to think about but I've been trying to use it to help people" Black replied as Cap nodded.
"Yes, we have some reports of your…skeleton from saving young women in the more porror parts of New York…did it have to come to take the lives of the attacker's son?" she asked, looking Black in the eye as he shivered at the memories of Hamon ripping a thugs arm off.
"I didn't want to do it, but I didn't have any better way, Hamon…he was right when he killed them, they would have went out and killed someone once they healed, it was the best way, couldn;'t stomach it once I turned back but it was better than letting them go on with killing so many" Black said his eyes not leaving the floor as Cap sighed.
"It's hard to take a life son, and I understand why, some of those people would have just continued so I'm not condemning you for the act, just suggesting that you keep it to a last resort in the future" she said as Blacks eyes snapped up to look at her.
"I…can continue helping people?" he asked as Cap nodded to him with a smile, remembering a few recruits back in the day with the eagerness to help their fellow man. They just needed the right training.
"If everything works out you'll be able to help people some some connections to SHIELD, now…what do you know about the Lizard serum" she asked, getting serious as Black raised an eyebrow at her.
"The…what?" he asked honestly confused as Cap sighed to herself.
"That…I honestly expected that but this makes it easier that you aren't connected to it" she said as Black gave her a confused look. "Dont worry about it son, now we need to run a few tests, nothing to bad and you'll be free within a day or so after we sort out details, I'll have an agent talk to you soon" She said, standing up and leaving the room as Black stayed there.
Wait.
She just left him tied to the chair!
Fuck.
Not to long later a scientist walked into the room, her glare making the boy freeze as four guards aimed their guns at him, this…wasn't standard procedure was it.
"Get him into the operating room, and get Agent Hill in there too" the scientist sneered as two of the guards pulled him out of the room…still trapped to the chair btw.
Across the helicarrier, Gwen was pacing back and forth. On the wall…mumbling to herself and grabbing her hair as she tried to make sense of all of this. So far nothing was helping but pacing on the wall did keep her from wearing a trench into the floor at least.
"Having fun up there" a sudden voice made the teen jump, latching onto the ceiling as she looked wide eyed at Cap walking into the room. The older woman chuckling as she made her way to a counter, grabbing a coffee cup for herself as Gwen calmed down.
"Cap…what, what did he say?" Gwen asked, jumping down from the ceiling as Cap handed her a cup of coffee as well.
"I'll be straight with you Gwen, he doesn't remember who he is, and the results on his blood tests we took before he woke up are stilling coming through" Cap said as the girls head dipped slightly, looking at her feet as she tried to get a grip on what she was just told.
"He…nothing at all?" Gwen asked desperately as she leaned against the counter, placing the cup of coffee down as she let her head fall into her hands. A sudden hand on her shoulder made her look up as Cap gave her a sympathetic smile.
"We will sort this out Gwen, the resemblance to Peter Parker is far too great to ignore and cases of amnesia are common when…" Cap trailed off as she couldn't finish her sentence. What else could she say, they didn't even know if Peter Parker came back to life or if he was some kind of clone or something else.
"Just…what will happen to him" Gwen asked as she looked into Cap's eyes, hoping the older hero had an answer for her. One that made all her worries go away. Before the soldier could reply a frantic scientist ran into the break room.
"Captain, we have an issue!" the man yelled as Cap grabbed his shoulder, keeping him steady as he caught his breath. "An unregistered test is being conducted on the new patient, Agent Hill is over seeing it, but, but, they don't know what they are doing, the patient has the serum in his blood…the original serum!" the man yelled as Casp and Gwen shot off down the hallway, heading straight for the operating rooms as fast as they could.
In the operating room, Black screamed, a high voltage of electricity sourcing through his body, his voice going horse before it stopped, leaving him laying limp in the operating chair as a few scientists outside the containment cell made notes.
At the back of the room, a black haired woman watched, setting up the next test for the subject as another scientist brought her a syringe filled with a green, almost glowing substance.
"Agent Hill, the lower dosage of the modified lizard serum is prepared, test subject alpha has had his muscles stimulated enough for the serum to work quickly and effectively" the scientist informed her, handing her the syringe as she nodded to him.
This was going to be one of many. And she wouldn't stop until this was made into an effective cure for the lizard serum. She was just lucky to have found out that the originally victim, Peter Parker, had been brought into the SHIELD helicarrier.
It was her lucky day really.
Before she could move though, the solid steal doors to the operating room were torn open, both Captain america and spider-women bursting into the room as Cap told everyone to stand down.
"Get him out of that cell now!" the soldier roared, glaring at the scientists holding the taser probes as the guards froze up at the tone in the hero voice.
"Samatha this is just…" Agent hill didn't get a chance to finish before Gwen was on her, pinning her against the wall with her webs before grabbing the containment cell and with her sheer strength, torn the cell open.
"No, Agent Hill, this was not another test that you were allowed to conduct, and you will be answering for this horrible inhuman action towards that young man" Cap sneered, marching up to the scientist as the agent suddenly felt she was much smaller than she just was.
An angry Captain America was not something you could just talk your way out of.
"I want everyone that was here and in the know about these tests to report to my barics now, you have all been apart of unregistered testing against an unwilling patient and you will be held responsible" she said, her voice as hard as steel as the guards started moving the scientist out of the room, a few of them being escorted as well due to follow orders from the agents without question.
"Wilson, these are necessary, the test results from that child show he has the serum in its original form, meaning we need to…" Hill was cut off again, her eyes going wide as Cap rounded on her, a fist embedded into the wall beside her head.
"We will speak after Agent Hill," Cap said, leaving no room for arguments as the scientist left, sneering at the older woman before leaving through the broken door. Turning back to the containment cell, Cap marched forward as Gwen just got the restraints off of Blacks body, his body falling into her arms as she held him close.
"Cap…what the fuck" Gwen whispered, keeping a firm grip on the teens body as Cap pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.
"That's what I want to know, we got here just in time before they could inject him with the modified serum cure but this was cruel and they will be answering for this" Cap promised as Gwen narrowed her eyes at the door where the group of scientists left.
She didn't trust SHIELD as it was but this was just beyond what she thought they would do for their version of the greater good.
"I'm taking him back to my apartment, I'm not trusting SHIELD with his care after that" Gwen spoke as Cap sighed to herself.
"I'll organise a copter down to New York for you in a few minutes, let me grab the rest of his belongs before you leave" Cap said as she and Gwen left the operating room, arriving quickly as a research lab where Gwen say the four cards that Black had on him displayed on a table, each one boeing scanned and the data being recorded on the computers.
"What are those things?" she asked as Cap made her way into the room, a scientist quickly retrieving the cards for the soldier as they didn't want to try and argue when the hero shot them a heated glare.
"We don't actually know, they give off a wave signature that doesn't seem normal to anyone and we suspect they are connected to Black's transformations" Cap explained as she handed the four cards to Gwen, none of them noticing the slight shine they gave off when they barely touched the teens body.
"Black?" Gwen asked as the two of them made their way down the hallway, heading towards the helicopter bay for transport.
"His current name, he doesn't remember anything Gwen, and that means his own name, if…if you plan to tell him who he is then try to keep it controlled until he is ready to learn all of the details" Cap said as the younger girl narrowed her eyes in frustration.
This was going great that's for sure.
Heading into the copter, Cap held the door open as she eyed the knocked out teen being strapped into the chair beside Gwen.
"This doesn't change anything in regards to your innocent Spider-women…that data can still be released at any time" she said, pulling the door shut as Gwen glared at the older hero. This really wasn't the time for that at all.
The helicopter left the base soon after, leaving Cap to glare towards the door towards her barracks as she marched forward, radioing in to have Peggy contact her as soon as possible for a serious talk on how human testing was far too relaxed around the scientists in SHIELD.
Swinging to her apartment, Gwen didn't even bother with the door as she opened the window to her room, slipping inside as she quickly made her way to the living room. Placing Black on the couch and pulling her mask and hood off to breathe a little. Gwen moved to the cabinets to search for anything that could help the knocked out teen, keeping an eye on him as she found some painkillers for when he woke up.
"Ahem" a cough made the spider girl freeze, her eyes going wide as she looked over her shoulder to see her roommates and bandmates staring at her. Betty and MJ looking between her and the unconscious Black on the couch while Glory looks down at her outfit.
Her spider-women outfit…that she was still wearing.
Well shit.
"I can explain everything just dont freak the fuck out for two seconds okay" Gwen said, hodliong her hands up like she was behind held at gun point while Mj gave her a shit eating grin in return.
"Oh this is going to be good spider-Gwen" she said, marching into the room as Glory and Betty followed. Betty moved to grab a towel to soak and place onto Blacks forehead while Glory looked at him suspiciously.
"So, who's your friend?" Betty asked as the four of them stood around the kitchen table, Gwen having left the painkillers on the table beside the couch while Black slept off whatever those scientists did to him.
"Thats…thats Peter Parker" Gwen said quietly, watching as the three girls looked back at the knocked out teen, MJ turning to Gwen with a raised eyebrow for her to continue. "It's…been a rough night okay, I'm still reeling at the fact my best friend is alive after we buried him two years ago so…its been a day" Gwen explained unhelpfully as Glory narrowed her eyes at her.
"So when were we going to find out you were the hero everyone is calling a killer?" She asked as Gwen sighed softly.
"Honestly, I've been keeping it under wraps to keep everyone safe, the more people that know the more chance they have of being targets to get to me so…I didn't have a choice really" Gwen said as Betty laid a hand on her shoulder.
"We get that Gwen, but like, it would have helped when you had to disappear during practise without saying a word, could have got a better cover story that you needed the bathroom for 4 hours" Betty joked to lighten the mood as Gwen smiled at her friend.
They continued to talk from there, Gwen explaining how she was bitten at the science trip back in high school and some of the stuff she could do now as spider-women. Laughing and joking with her bandmates about some of the stuff she did to get out of class or just the horrible excuses she made to them over the years.
"So…can you lift the couch?" Betty asked, looking at Gwen excitedly as the spider girl laughed at her friend.
"I could, but present company might make the idea of lifting the couch with you on it a bit difficult" Gwen replied as the girls glanced at the couch, once again reminded of the knocked out teen sleeping there.
"So…what is his story?" Glory asked, resting her drink on the counter as she stared at the hoodie wearing teen, wondering how he was connected to any of this at all. In reply, Gwen fished out the four cards from her pocket, placing them on the tabletop for them all to look at.
"What are these?" MJ asked, picking up the card with firewall dragon displayed on the front. "Wasn't this the guy that you helped fight that fish bowl wearing dude last week?" looking at the card MJ could have sworn it winked at her.
Weird.
"That's what I want to know, Peter, or Black or whatever, he transformed into this gold one here…the…" Gwen trailed off, not able to finish her sentence as Glory narrowed her eyes at the golden card in her hand.
"The one that murdered that girl in the middle of the street and if the news reports around hell's kitchen are right, have been hanging peoples dewad bodies from rooftops" she said with a slight sneer as Gwen shot her a look.
"He didn't have a choice with the girl earlier, I…it was so fucked up but what else could he have done when he was being tossed around like a rag doll trying to keep people safe, the …the police even told me to back off when I got there" Gwen said as the other girls looked at her in surprise.
The fact that the police, the most anti vigilante group in the city, would let one get away was just unthinkable considering how hard they fought to even try and catch spider-woman.
Placing the Homan card down on the table, Gwen looked over the other two cards, she hadn't seen the black rose in action yet and the eway the red eyes one was looking at her, she didn't want to see that one just yet…Hamon was enough right now.
"So what do we do?" Betty asked, looking over the unconscious Black as he gently stirred on the couch. Gwen made her way to the couch, kneeling down and brushing a few stray locks of brown hair from Black's forehead…his hair was getting long and…when was the last time he showered?
"I…just want to make sure he's okay first" Gwen replied, her expression softening as she looked at Black's sleeping face. She really did miss the dork and maybe she could finally tell him everything she missed out on before everything went to shit.
She wasn't going to mess this up, not this time.
A sudden gorna made the girl jump, her friends looking at her oddly before they noticed Black stirring. Groaning softly, the teen could barely open his eyes as he turned away form the light above him.
"Hay hay, you're okay" a familiar voice spoke, barely registering to the teen as a faint ache shot through the back of his head. His muscles tensed and relaxed on reflex, sore from being tortured in a metal chairs for a good few minutes by SHIELD.
Last time he would trust those guys, that's for sure.
"Get him some water Betty" the voice said, as Black finally felt his vision clearing, looking to find himself on someone's couch. And being watched by three girls around his age…not how he thought he would wake up honestly.
A fourth one returned from what he assumed was the kitchen, handing the pretty blonde a glass of water as she knelt by his side. Her green eyes locked with his as Black felt a sudden influx of pain in his head, memories of her coming and going as fast, nothing being understood as Black scrunched his eyes shut in response.
"Here, drink slowly okay" the blonde's voice, a cold glass being pressed to his lips as Black accepted the drink. Gulping the water down slowly, Black ignored the dull pain in his head to finally look at the blonde again, trying to remember her name but just…couldn't.
This whole memory loss thing was pissing him off honestly. A faint laughter in the back of his head, and the image of Hamons fanged grin making the teen scowl at the fact one of the card spirits was laughing at him.
Great just what he needed on top of everything else.
Wait.
"Cards" he croaked out softly as the black haired girl by the counter moved, holding up the four cards as she walked forward. "Thank you" accepting the cards, Black felt a faint jolt of fire from the red eyes card, the black dragon glaring at him before the feeling disappeared.
Least he knew where he stood with that card.
Turning back to the blonde girl, Black felt that dull pain again as he spoke, resisting the urge to look away this time. "Thank you…do…do I know you?" he asked, and suddenly it seemed like the worst thing he could have said.
The girl's face fell…looking completely heartbroken as the other girls around them seemed to show a different reaction to his words. One of them even looking at him angrily for half a second…what was that all about.
"Yeah…you you did, I just…what's your name, we didn't get to talk much before everything that happened at SHIELD" the blonde spoke as Black was again reminded of where he was…and the fact he wasn't still strapped to a chair again.
"I'm…Black, how did I get out I was…they were shocking me with those tazers and then I couldn't really hear much or even see after that" he said as the three girls behind the blonde looked at him with surprise.
"You didn't say he was being tortured Gwen" the red head said, the name making Black wince in pain as if he was stuck in the face. The blonde, Gwen was beside him in an instant, her touch on his shoulder feeling like hot coals as he flinched away.
"I…I need…leave" he sputtered, fumbling at the four cards in his hands as a faint warm spread out from the black rose card. "Don't worry child…let us take over from here" a soft voice whispered into his ear before his vision faded.
The four girls were blown back as the teen boys body faded away, a second later a black and red dragon surged forward, the red rose like wings curled in on itself as he smashed through the window, disappearing into the street before Gwen could follow him.
"He just broke our window!" Betty yelled, making Gwen flinch as she raised she would be paying for the repairs…so much for pizza night.