Chapter 4
"I bet you're all happy now that I had you pack a nice outfit," Mr Harrington said loudly, as their group walked through the streets of Prague.
Turns out, a great way to keep everyone inside and not at the carnival, was to send their group to the opera. Something that his classmates were taking all too well when they found out the news. Ned, ever the loyalist, had been trying it hype it up like it wasn't a completely awful experience, but all of his attempts were falling flat.
He was almost relieved that that he wouldn't actually be attending.
Not that the alternative of fighting a giant Fire Elemental was preferable. But at least it wasn't the opera.
His mom had taken him and Steve once, to see one of the ones that her mother had loved, and it hadn't been a terrible affair.
But it had been long.
Painstakingly long.
And the alternative hadn't been going to a fun carnival which they didn't know was about to blow up.
Which made it all the more perfect of a way to keep his friends safe. Even if it was something they hated, at least they'd be alive. At least they wouldn't be in harm's way.
"Yeah," Flash said sarcastically, "Because we'd much rather go to a four-hour opera instead of the biggest party in the world."
"Again, don't look at me," Mr Dell said, as they trekked through a crowd of carnival goers. The street was filled with bright lights and enthusiastic people, and their energy somehow made his own groups' seem like a funeral procession.
If the world wasn't going to end today if he failed, then he'd sure as heck want to go to the festival.
"Parker, do you copy? Comm check, one, two," Hill said through his earpiece, as he walked next to MJ. She gave him a curious look, as he looked anywhere but at her. Even if all he wanted to do was slip his hand through hers.
"Copy," he said in a low voice, right as a set of fireworks went off, so MJ wouldn't hear him. He knew Brad was walking behind them, suspiciously. The dude hadn't confronted Peter about the missing photo from his phone, but it was clear that he'd suspected Peter had something to do with it. Even if he didn't know just how Peter had managed to get into his phone to remove it.
He sure as hell wasn't going to tell the guy that he had glasses from his mother that let him hack into his phone, but he'd nearly sent a drone after him in the process.
As they made their way into the opera hall, he wasn't surprised to see the hall was empty, except for a few elderly attendees.
Because everyone else was at the carnival.
"Okay, we're here," Mr Harrington said with false cheer. "Beat the rush."
"Yeah, the rush out," Mr Dell said sarcastically. When even their teachers would rather be at the carnival, he knew that they'd all be resentful of him if they knew the truth. But well, it was what it was.
"Lucky for us, we got the best seats in the house," Mr Harrington said, as his class made their way to the front of the theatre.
MJ stopped walking, and he paused to look at her. She was wearing a floral dress with her hair out, and he couldn't help but notice just how lovely she looked.
"You look really pretty," he said to her earnestly, as his heart raced.
"And therefore, I have value?" MJ shot back, and he panicked. He'd made a mess of things before he'd even known what he was saying.
That was not what he meant to say at all. It was nowhere near close. Oh God, how could he come back from this? Now that she thought that he was just some sort of shallow teenage boy-
"No!" he stumbled quickly, "That's not what I meant at all. I was just-"
"I'm messing with you," she laughed as her face filled with a smile.
He let out a relieved laugh of his own.
"Thank you," she told him, and he wished he could kiss her right here.
"You're welcome," he commented.
"You look pretty too," she told him, and he felt his face turn red.
"Thank you," he repeated awkwardly.
Their moment was broken up by Betty and Ned who entered then.
"Oh, my gosh! Opera glasses!" Betty said as she picked one up.
"So cute," Ned grinned.
"Wanna go in on a pair?" MJ asked him awkwardly.
"You mean, let's sit next to each other?" he asked her, feeling his heart race.
"Yeah," she confirmed.
He hated those elemental monsters all the more.
"Are you in position?" Fury asked him, and he forgot about MJ's question for a second as his mind blanked.
"No," he responded to Fury, before freezing, knowing how MJ would take it.
"Okay?" MJ said a bit confused, "No you don't want to sit next to me?"
"Why the hell not, Parker?" Fury asked him annoyed.
"Or no you just don't want the glasses?" MJ asked, and his panic intensified.
He needed to exit, now.
"I didn't mean that!" he said quickly. "If you go ahead, I'll grab us a pair.
"I'll save you a seat next to me," MJ smiled again, and he hated that he would be flaking on her. But the alternative was that she'd be dead, and he'd be dead, and they'd all be dead if the fire monster won. And that was much worse.
"Awesome," he said, as she turned to make her way to the front of the theatre.
"Parker Stark-Rogers," Fury repeated.
"I'm coming, just give me a second," he said, as Betty walked past him, and Ned stopped, knowing his was about to leave.
"I gotta go," Peter told his friend, as Ned nodded, "Could you tell MJ that I'm sick or something? And that I'm really sorry? Can you also buy her a pair of glasses?"
He thrust a bill into his friend's hands.
"Be careful," Ned said back to him, "And Peter, whatever you do, please steer the monster away from the opera house."
"Yeah, I know," he sighed.
He turned to leave then, before anyone spotted him, and he looked back at MJ one last time as the opera started. He saw Brad sit next to MJ and he felt a sense of anger wash over him. Save the world. Lose the girl.
"Coming," Peter told Fury, as he bolted out of the opera house.
He swung up to the top of the building discreetly, moving along the rooftops after discarding his suit and donning the black spider outfit SHIELD had provided him. It had nothing on the suits his mom made with him, but it was discreet. And it would protect his identity.
He swung over to get into position, looking down onto the carnival below.
"All right. I'm in position. Uh…As soon as I see something, Beck, I'll let you know," Peter said, a bit unsure.
"Roger that," Beck said over the comms.
"How's the suit?" Fury asked him. "Come close to what your mother can make?"
"Not even remotely," he grinned, as Fury let out a short laugh.
"Energy spiking," Fury noted.
"We have seismic activity," Hill confirmed, and he took a deep breath. It was happening. The fire monster was about to attack.
He had modified the mask he'd been given earlier that day, to add in a comm line back to the Stark tower so he could be in contact with his mom and dad. He didn't know why, but Fury still hadn't managed to contact them or Strange, and he knew something was amiss. But he didn't have time to dwell on that now.
It started with smoke gathering at the statue in the centre of the carnival, followed by fire moving quickly, wrapping itself around the base, before devouring it where it stood.
And all that remained was a Fire Elemental, in the centre of the crowd.
He could hear screams from below him, as he knew it was time, "Okay he's here! Beck, are you ready?"
"On your lead, Spider-Man," Beck said through the comms.
The elemental began to smash through the carnival as the people in attendance ran away in fear, and he felt an iota of relief that his friends were safe.
Quentin landed in front of the monster, and his hands glowed green, shooting the monster twice with laser beams.
"You're up, kid," Beck said, and Peter swing in front of it, hitting a fire hydrant with a web shooter, as he pulled it out of the ground. Immediately water flooded upwards and hit the elemental straight in the chest, enveloping it.
As the steam cleared, the elemental remained, enraged, as it roared and charged forward, attempting to punch Peter.
He backflipped away from it, landing on the carousel in front of him, as the monster destroyed it before Peter could gather his bearings.
"No!" he screamed out, as he tried to get off the ground. The monster was absorbing the carousel, holding up the metallic pieces, "Beck! He's got the carousel! He's getting bigger!"
"Night Monkey, help!" he heard screaming, and he looked up to see Ned and Betty trapped on the Ferris wheel.
What the heck?
They were supposed to be at the opera! He'd planned for them to be safe and away from here.
"Save us!" Betty called out again. "We're stuck!"
"Oh, no, no, no," he said, feeling panic wash over him.
His friends were in danger.
He turned around to see the growing Fire Elemental approach them, roaring loudly, and he tried shooting his web shooters at it, only for them to catch on fire as the fire moved towards him.
The Fire Elemental moved to bring its fist down on Peter, as Beck landed then, shielding him from the attack.
"Are you okay?" Peter asked him quickly, as the Elemental struggled to break through the barrier.
"On to Plan B?" Beck groaned, struggling to keep it up.
"Yeah!" Peter said, "We just gotta hit him with something he can't absorb."
"I go left, you go right, now!" Beck said, as he brought down the barrier. Peter lunged right, as the Elemental began chasing after him, throwing fire balls at him. He narrowly managed to avoid it, as he swung up to the top of a building, grabbing a rock and throwing it at the Elemental, using a lamp post to give him momentum as he swung.
He watched the shot hit him, as the monster roared in pain.
"Okay, shoot him!" Peter screamed.
"Yeah!" Beck said, flying in as he shot at the monster. He could see the green absorb in his chest, and they knew they'd made their mark, "That hurt him. Keep it coming!"
He used his webs then, grabbing more fallen concrete, as he chucked it at the fire monster, and Beck shot at it in coordination. The monster was less than pleased, as it used the chance to whack Beck out of the air.
"Spider-Man, keep your distance!" Beck warned him.
"I'm trying!" Peter said.
"We can't let him get near the Ferris wheel!" Beck said urgently, as the monster moved towards it.
"I'm on it!" Peter said quickly. This would be so much easier if they had reinforcements.
He fell to the ground, as the Elemental roared at him, before hitting down near him. He watched in horror as the ground cracked open, with a trail of fire moving quickly towards the Ferris wheel. The Ferris wheel that Betty and Ned were trapped on.
He could hear Betty and Ned's screams, and given the way the Elemental was moving, he knew it did too.
It moved towards the tipping Ferris wheel, with its' hand extended outwards, as Beck flew in front of it, blasting directly at its hands. Peter used the opportunity to run to the Ferris wheel, trying to web it, only to have his web hit something he couldn't quite see.
"Whoa, what is that?" Peter asked in confusion.
He didn't ponder on it further as the Ferris wheel began to rock, and he used the opportunity instead to swing upwards and web it in place.
He could see the green lasers begin to break the monster apart, and he cheered, "That's it! Nice! Nice! You got him!"
The monster backed up into falling wood, as he absorbed it with a grin.
"No, no, no," Beck said quickly, as the monster began to grow in size.
"It's too late," Hill said over the comms.
He felt his chest begin to sink.
"What are you going to do?" he asked the man desperately.
He felt a sense of panic fill over him. Like how he'd felt when he saw Toni go into that portal. When he saw his family fight against Thanos.
Beck's mask came back on, as he looked at the elemental, "What I should have done last time," Beck said simply.
"Beck, don't do it!" he screamed, but the man didn't listen. He began to gather all his power, as the green lights hovered around his arms, and he screamed in pain.
He flew towards the monster quickly, as he hit it in the chest. Green began to wash all over the monster as it crumbled to the ground, releasing green energy throughout the city.
As the light cleared, all that remained was Beck, lying on the middle of the ground.
Peter dropped down then, approaching the man carefully, "Mr Beck?"
He rolled him over gently and was glad he could see him breathing still.
"Oh thank Darwin," he let out a relieved remark, as he helped pull the man to his feet.
"So, it's over?" Hill asked, as she approached them then, with Fury circling around Beck.
"That was the last of them," Beck confirmed.
"But not the last threat we'll ever face. We need to stay vigilant. There's a void in this world for someone like you. Hill and I are going to Europol headquarters in Berlin tomorrow. You should join us," Fury told him.
Quentin clasped onto Fury's hands, "Thank you. I just might take you up on that."
"You got gifts, Parker," Fury said pointedly, "But you didn't want to be here. Your parents didn't want you to be here."
"Mr Fury-" He tried as the man cut him off.
"I'd love to have you join us too," Fury told him, "But you're going to need to decide if you're ready to step out of your mother and father's shadow and be your own man. They made you an Avenger for a reason. I need that. The world needs that. But if you want to stay at home and continue to be the scared little boy, then that's all you'll ever be."
He felt a sense of distress pass over him.
How many times had he feared that he'd never be good enough on his own? Every battle he'd faced, he had someone else with him helping. He'd never been a hero on his own.
"The choice is yours," Fury told him simply, before turning to walk away.
He felt the pressure crushing down on him, and he really. wanted to get out of here. He wanted to go back to the hotel. To check on Ned and Betty and call his parents.
He was seventeen years old, but he still wanted his parents to reassure him that everything was okay.
He swallowed, as he sensed Beck approach him.
"Let's get a drink," Quentin said, clapping him on the back. "You've earned it."
"I'm not twenty-one," Peter argued.
"Drinking age here is eighteen," Beck grinned, "Besides, I'll get you a coke. It doesn't need to be alcohol."
He was hesitant as he felt Beck press him forward, "Come on. You look like you could use it. You can tell me all about your life and what it's like growing up with Toni Stark and Steve Rogers as your parents."
He froze at that as the distrust he'd built over the years kicked in. Usually when people wanted to know about his parents, they wanted to know about them for one reason.
But Beck wasn't like that, right?
He nodded, as he followed the man to a bar nearby, texting Ned to ask him if he was alright. He couldn't even imagine how terrifying it must have been to have been trapped on that ferris wheel with no way off.
"I'll get a pint of whatever's on tap," Beck said, "And a coke for him."
If the bartender was curious about their costumes, she chose not to say anything. He knew it was a risk being out like this, given that they'd just fought a public battle in the centre of the city.
"Hey," Beck said, as they were handed their drinks. "You gotta celebrate, you did something good tonight."
"Yeah," he said, a bit dejected. "Though you did all the heavy lifting."
Beck patted him on the back.
"What's on your mind, Kid?" Beck asked him gently.
"Fury was right," he swallowed, "I do rely on my parents a lot. I know they love me and that they'd do anything for me. And I love them too. But I'm only where I am today because of them. I don't think I'd be able to take on any big villains by myself. And can I even call myself a superhero if not?"
"There's nothing wrong with being part of a team," Beck told him, "Your parents are both Avengers. They take on the big threats together. Why can't you also be part of a team? Besides, they weren't the ones who were here today. They were at home, retired. You were the one who fought against the Fire Elemental."
"With your help," Peter commented.
"With my help," Beck said, "But I needed your help too. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you."
He looked at the man in disbelief, "You flew into him and destroyed him from the inside," Peter said. "I think you would have been fine without me."
"Maybe," Beck said simply, "Maybe not. But you are a hero, Peter. Regardless of what anyone else says. You. Are. A. Hero."
He looked back down at his drink.
"It's also okay if you don't want to be," Beck said after a moment.
"What?" Peter asked, a bit confused.
"You weren't really given much of a choice, Peter," Beck said softly, "Your parents are heroes. The most famous heroes of all time, arguably. Your mother is Iron Woman; she's basically the first modern day hero. And your father, Captain America, was the first hero in history. It's no wonder you decided to take up the mantle to be a hero yourself. But I want you to know that it's okay if you don't want to be. You're allowed to also be a normal kid."
"I didn't become a hero because of them," Peter said, feeling a little confused, "It was my own choice. They weren't even happy when they found out that I was one. They wanted me to stay out of it, and if it weren't for my powers, I don't think they would have even let me wear a suit otherwise."
"What else were you supposed to do?" Beck asked, "You have powers. You have means. And you have a good heart. But being a hero is not something that comes lightly. No one should take it lightly. No one is going to blame you if you decided you didn't want to do this anymore. No one blames your parents for deciding they want to be normal. Why would they blame you for deciding you wanted to be a teenager?"
"What are you suggesting?" Peter asked, confused.
"Your parents left the world in the hands of others," Beck told him, "In Strange's hands, and the rest of the Avengers. And even when they were busy, I stepped up. Someone else will always be there to step up. So if you wanted to take a step back, there would be others to fill your place. What do you want, Peter?"
He felt a rush of emotions pass over him, as he felt overwhelmed.
Because on one hand, if he was a normal person, he wouldn't have to bear the weight of the world on his shoulders. He could be a normal kid. He could hang out with MJ and tell her how he felt. He could go to university without pressure. He could do things after school other than trying to keep his city safe.
But the thought didn't feel right.
He had become Spider-Man because he wanted to keep the city safe from things like what happened to his Uncle. He wanted to save lives. He wanted to help people. Because he had been given powers. Because it was in his nature. Not because he had to, but because he wanted to.
And sure, it would be nice if he could have gone to the carnival tonight like a normal teen with MJ if the world hadn't been about to end. Or gone to the opera and shared glasses with her. Or even just spent time with her on the trip and not spend the entire time running around saving the world.
But could he really sit on the sidelines when the world needed him?
They were interrupted then by a woman who came up from behind him and handed him the EDITH glasses.
"Thank you so much!" he said, a little startled. He hadn't even realized he'd dropped them. When had he dropped them?
"What are those?" Beck said, sounding a bit interested, "Are those the-?"
"EDITH glasses?" Peter asked, "Yeah."
"It was just on the floor?" Beck said, and he felt a sense of guilt, "Try them on, let's see how they look on you."
He put them on carefully, and looked at Beck, "I really like them. Mom did a great job with these."
"Can I be completely honest with you?" Beck asked, and he nodded, "They look really stupid. I think Toni Stark might have missed the mark with these."
He looked confused. Everyone else had thought they looked really good. As did he.
Maybe it was a generational thing? Or an alternate universe thing?
"But maybe they have a contact-lens version of them," Beck prompted, as he gestured his hand over, wanting to try them on.
Peter frowned, knowing how sceptical her mother was about handing her technology over to strangers that she didn't know. But they only worked for him, right? So was there any real harm?"
He took them off, as he handed them to Beck, and the screen remained inactivated.
"How do I look?" Beck asked him, and Peter laughed.
"I think they look way better on me," Peter grinned, as he looked up and saw a clock. It was getting rather late, and he knew he should head back to the hotel. "I should probably go. After today, my teachers might get worried if they can't find me. Especially after the news of the attack breaks."
Beck looked disappointed at that, "Just promise me you'll think about taking it easy. Being a normal kid, okay?"
"I promise," Peter told him honestly. He had no plans to step back, but he knew the man meant well.
"Say it like a nerd," Beck teased him, "Tell me you confirm. Or affirmative."
"I confirm it?" Peter said, a little confused.
"Thanks, Parker," Beck grinned, standing up, as he reached into his pocket, "That's just what I needed you to say. I was hoping to do this the easy way but looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way instead."
Peter felt his spider senses acting up as the man pulled a device out of his pocket. He moved to stand up quickly, but before he could, the man had flashed a bright light in front of him, and the world went black.