The mission had gone smoothly - despite the routine assignment running longer than they'd expected. There were no casualties and Fury was incredibly pleased with the amount of intel collected on the illegal trade of alien weapons. But now they were headed back home.
"You glad to be goin' home?" Rhodey asked from the copilot seat. "I know I am."
"That reconnaissance mission took way too long." Natasha ground out, her glare set upon the city below them. She checked the quinjets GPS before continuing. "But yes, it's a relief to finally be heading home."
"Oh, don't be so negative Nat." The colonel jokingly chastised. "Japan was beautiful. And we got to stay at a hotel! That never happens when we're on missions."
She chuckled half heartedly. "That is true."
He shot the spy a reassuring smile. It was no secret how much she adored Peter. Having a past with hydra herself, Natasha had been pivotal to Peter's recovery. And they had grown very close; an outsider who saw them interact would think they were mother and son.
"Don't worry Nat, you'll see your baby spider in no time."
A smile grew on her lips. "мой ребенок паук." (My baby spider.)
Bruce hummed quietly to himself as he checked Peter's vitals and replaced the fifth rally pack before reconnecting the new one back into the IV. The doctor wasn't one to make a lot of noise; even ones as quiet and steady as humming. But his nerves were shot and it was all he could do to keep his mind busy so he wouldn't hulk out. Seeing his nephew - sick and unconscious - laid out on a hospital bed hurt like nothing else.
He glanced down at Tony - who was passed out in a chair beside the bed - his head resting on both his arms with one wing draped over his son's body. Steve was sitting beside him, snoring lightly with his head on the mechanic's shoulder.
"Thor and Valkyrie have just arrived." Friday's voice cut through the steady beeping of the heart monitor. She spoke at a softer volume because of the sleeping heroes and Bruce internally thanked her intuitiveness. Neither Steve nor Tony had gotten any sleep the previous night. "They are in the waiting room down the hall."
"Thank you Friday." Bruce said. He exited the room and walked down the short stretch of hallway - which was a calming grey color with light blue accents, instead of the typical white most hospitals or medical facilities were.
"Banner! It is good to see you, my friend." Thor pulled the scientist into a tight hug, nearly lifting him off the ground. "Though I wish it were under better circumstances."
It had been a little over four months since Thor or any other asgardian had come to visit. When Bruce had called - using a cellphone Tony had made specifically for long distances and that reached the new Asgard easily - Thor had been ecstatic. But his joy quickly deflated when the entire situation had been explained.
Peter in particular loved when the gods paid them a visit. He was fascinated by the Norse culture and really enjoyed sparring with his uncle Thor because the god was the only other person who was physically stronger than him which really helped the teen test and control his strength.
Both Thor and Valkyrie were equally upset by the arachnid's absence. The muscular female warrior stepped forward, eager to find the remaining creatures that were causing the trouble. She gripped the hilt of her sword and said, "where's this creature? I'd like to know what we're dealing with here."
"That's just it," Sam interjected, "we don't know what we're dealing with."
"Other aliens and monsters that we've seen and examined are at least somewhat like the animals we have on earth." Bruce explained as he began leading the way to the quarantined area they'd set up farther down the hall. "Obviously there are alien beings that are completely bizarre to us; but most of them, to some extent have homologous structures. In other words, they have a brain, a spine, something akin to lungs, a nervous system and go through the same bodily functions we do." He sighed. "This thing doesn't have a stomach or a heart. And neither Tony nor I could find any internal organs that functioned as a substitute. It's blood is green and appears to be sulfur based, if the awful smell is anything to go by."
He opened the door and froze when he saw the deep crimson cloak that he'd notice anywhere. "Stephen?"
Stephen turned away from the corpse in the center of the room, a book open in one hand. The cloak flew over and landed on the tall man's shoulders. "I'm sorry for my delay. I would have come the moment you called but I was dealing with some other business." His voice was solemn, lacking the usual snark and he refused to meet anyone's gaze. The subtle changes in the usually confident - and sometimes arrogant - Doctor's personality gave away how sincere he was being.
Though he would never admit it, the Sorcerer Supreme cared for Peter and never wanted to see him hurting.
Bruce nodded in understanding. "It's fine Stephen." He shot a glare towards Bucky and Clint who clearly wanted to argue about the sorcerer's tardiness. "You're here now, and that's what matters. "Right guys?"
He received multiple eye rolls and a drawn out sigh from Bucky but no verbal complaints. "So," he turned his attention to the doctor, "can you enlighten us in regards to our friend over here." He walked over to the table where the body rested.
Stephen nodded and with a quick hand motion the book he'd been holding disappeared. "Within the three sanctums, there are countless volumes of textbooks detailing the multiverse as well as many alternate universes and dimensions it encompasses. Not to mention the trillions of organisms you might find." He spoke as he examined the body. "The Ancient One, in particular, helped discover some of its secrets." Using a scalpel, he removed some skin and inspected it under a nearby microscope.
"Is any of that gonna help us?" Valkyrie asked, becoming slightly impatient. She wasn't too fond of textbooks and science rather than going straight for the punch. Both Clint and Bucky were quick to agree.
Stephen nodded. "This creature is documented." He shot a pointed look towards the archer and assassin. "Most American cultures have dubbed it the Hodag monster or, in Japan, a close relative of the Tao Tei. I prefer the term parasitus, which is Latin for parasite." He stepped away from the microscope and began pointing to certain parts of the creature.
"The parasitus is an incredibly odd creature that seems to defy most medical facts. Their eyes," using tissue forceps he gestured to the decaying eye sockets, "aren't actually for seeing. They're our equivalent of a heart. Which is why shooting it's eyes killed it." He poked the grey and pink organs that were exposed. "They don't have stomachs either."
"That's what confused us the most." Bruce exclaimed, following where Stephen was pointing.
Clint hesitantly approached the corpse. He knew it was dead, but it still creeped him out. "How the hell does it eat then? Like, where does it go?"
"It's difficult to explain." Stephen shrugged. "There are some books back at the sanctum that explain things articulately but... that won't help us with our current situation."
"How 'bout you explain it then." Bucky snapped. He glared at the doctor from his spot beside the door with the rest of the team.
"Some," he sighed, "beings, that are inter-dimensional or, in the parasitus' case, are simply a rare anomaly of nature, don't eat normally."
Valkyrie arched her eyebrows. "I've been to hundreds of planets and I've never heard of a creature that doesn't eat normally. My buddy Cold even had biscuits and gravy once. And he's an oddball."
"Like I said, the parasitus is an anomaly that most would think couldn't exist. These creatures live in another dimension that plays by a whole different set of rules. One of my colleagues has gone there. It's so desolate and such a hostile environment that the parasitus evolved to feed off of emotions and energy rather than traditional nutrients."
"Woah, hold up." Sam held up the timeout signal. "You're saying these things," he gestured widely to the creature in front of them, "these things feed of emotions? And drain what… a person's life force."
Stephen nodded. "Essentially, yes. Hence the name parasite."
"That's why Peter's so weak." Bruce ran a shaky hand through his hair. "This actually makes sense now. Th-these parasitus… they're between dimensions so they can't consume actual nutrients so... they've been feeding off of Pete."
"Holy shit." Bucky pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't… This is just- fucking insane."
The rest of the heroes nodded in agreement. Even Thor and Valkyrie - who were very knowledgeable about the multiverse and had seen thousands of aliens - found this new information surprising.
"And there's still more of them here, in the tower?" Thor asked Bruce.
"Yeah, at least six according to Peter."
Stephen poked two, grape sized organs that had been removed and were sitting in a tray on the counter. "They have two tiny brains. One is for maintaining it's body's proper functions, while the second is for keeping in touch with the alpha."
"You're saying there's a queen?" Clint mused. "Like with bees."
He nodded. "Just like bees. The alpha, be it male or female, is in charge of a pack of these." He poked the corpse again in emphasis. "These worker parasitus can't think for themselves. It's the alpha that gives them commands."
"What the fuck is going on?"
Everyone spun around - fear piercing their hearts - to see a very angry Natasha. Rhodey - though not as intimidating - looked equally pissed. "Well," she stalked forward, like a lioness cornering her prey.
"There's interdimensional aliens hiding in the tower and they're queen is trying to get Peter."
"You couldn't have been a little more gentle?" Sam slapped the archer's shoulder in frustration.
"No bro!" Clint looked at him incredulously. "You always do what Natasha says. Especially when she's this angry. She's rarely ever this mad an-" he turned back towards his fellow spy only to find an empty doorway. "Shit."
Thor looked up at the ceiling and asked, "Miss AI, where is Natasha?"
"Miss Romanov and Colonel Rhodes are going to see Peter." The AI responded promptly. "I've given them the room number."
Steve was poised at the foot of the bed as a silent sentry. His husband hadn't moved and was sitting in the same position, gaze locked on the small form before him; the Colonel's arm draped across his hunched shoulders.
Natasha sat on the edge of the bed, one hand carding through fluffy brown curls and the other gently holding her nephew's pale limp one. "мой ребенок паук." (My baby spider.) She continued to stroke Peter's head as she mumbled quiet Russian phrases. Her eyes were glassy and her voice wavered; but she refused to let any tears fall. No one said a word, giving the spy time to process what she was seeing.
The spy looked up with glistening eyes. "What's going on?" So they told her. Thoroughly, in as much detail as possible. When they - mostly Bruce - finished explaining, the spy nodded. "So what are we going to do?"
Tony shook his head sadly. "There's not much we can do. At least… not until Peter wakes up."
And, as if on cue, Peter squeezed the hand holding his and his eyelids fluttered open.
"Peter!" Tony exclaimed excitedly, relief evident in his voice. "Hey baby boy." He said when Peter turned to face him.
"Hey dad," he looked from the billionaire to the captain, "hey pops." His throat felt dry and his voice came out scratchy and rough; his entire body ached. After a moment of thought he remembered why he felt this way and what that meant.
A slight tug on his right hand drew him back to reality. He gasped, "мамочка!" (Momma.) "You're home."
The boy's sweet smile instantly raised the woman's spirits. "Привет мой паук." (Hi my baby spider.) She lightly tugged his curls, quickly blinking her tears away. She didn't want Peter to worry. "It's so good to see you sweetheart."
He blushed slightly. "It's good to see you too." With the help of his dad he managed to struggle into a seated position so he could hug his aunt. "I missed you a lot." He mumbled into her fiery red hair.
"Pete," Tony spoke up once the two spider themed heroes pulled back, their hands still interlocked, "Strange is here. He's gonna help us, 'kay."
Strange took that as he cue to step forward. He smiled down at the teen. "It's nice to see you again spider-man." He smirked at the teen's playful eye roll. "Though I wish it were under better circumstances. If you're up for it, I'd like to ask you some questions."
"You too Mr. Strange." A small smile hung on Peter's lips before letting it fall away. "So, what do you want to know?"