A/N: This is probably the most gruesome the story gets. Just to warn you.

His head hurt. His arm hurt more.

That was the first thing James thought when he gained consciousness. His vision was hazy, his mind struggling to catch up with itself. He shook his head, wincing, and tried to take stock of his situation. Both his arms were twisted painfully behind his back, the left one broken in several places. The back of his hand was burnt and he could feel multiple bruises across his face. He knew his injuries would heal once he transformed and his vision went green as soon as he realised that.

'Ah, ah, ah.' A voice said to his side. James looked up, his eyes fading back to brown. 'I wouldn't do that if I were you. Look behind you.'

James twisted his head, seeing the chain leading from the cuffs around his wrists. A similar cuff and chain was around his neck and James cursed himself for not noticing. He followed the length of the chain, to where Peter laid slumped against the wall. He was more bruised than James imagined himself to be but didn't see to have any broken bones. What worried James was the long thin cut across his temple. The chains linked Peter's neck to James' wrists and vice versa.

'You break those cuffs and a very strong electric shock will go through Mr Parker's neck. The same thing will happen if you break the chain. Understand Mr Banner?'

James glared at him, raising an eyebrow and trying to act natural. 'Who's Banner?'

'You are James Robert Thaddeus Banner, correct? Born November 7th, 2001, to Robert Bruce and Betty Banner.' The man smirked. 'You broke into my home, do you really think I wouldn't know who you were?'

James shrugged, groaning as it jolted his arm. In the corner of his eyes, he saw Peter stirring. He turned his gaze back to the man. He narrowed his eyes. 'Okay, I'll admit that's impressive. Are you going to be fair and tell me your name?'

The man smirked. 'Aldrich Killian. I'd shake your hand but...'

He trailed off, eyes glinting slightly. His gaze turned to Peter, who was slowly waking up. James growled, getting his attention. His eyes flashed green and he stared the man in the eyes which all the hatred he could muster.

'You're going to die, Mr Killian.' He growled, happy the Monstrosity's voice coming out of his mouth. 'You killed my friend and you are going to die. That's a promise.'

Killian raised an eyebrow, eyes flickering to Peter. James turned his head, catching Peter's concerned look before the teenager schooled his face. James would have rolled his eyes if he didn't think the action would be ridiculously juvenile. Peter just stared at him, raising an eyebrow. James shook his head slightly, eyes narrowing a bit.

Killian grinned. 'Now that you're both awake, we can have a proper conversation. I'm assuming you don't know what Extremis is.'

Peter and James just glared at him. Peter shuffled closer to James and nudged his uninjured shoulder with his own, trying to offer some comfort. James leant back onto Peter, his eyes softening as he looked back at his friend.

'No?' Killian said, clearly enjoying himself. 'I thought you were supposed to be smart. Extremis is the first functioning super soldier serum since the forties. It improves strength, speed, stamina and healing. It is the next step in human evolution.'

'Mutants are the next step in human evolution.' Peter said, jaw set. 'And I doubt this works one hundred percent of the time.'

Killian sneered. 'Mutants. Freaks if you ask me. At least our subjects are still human, just enhanced, and don't normally pose a threat to anyone.'

'Normally?' James said, wondering where the conversation was going but enjoying winding the man up. 'What happens when things aren't normal?'

'Some subjects can have a...violent reaction to Extremis. Their body rejects it.' Killian scowled. He held their gaze, smirking slightly. It was clear he wanted to come across cool and in control, able to command the whole room. It wasn't working particularly well. 'I'm sure neither of you would have such a reaction.'

James laughed shortly, raising an eyebrow. 'You think we're going to take your little serum? We're both enhanced humans, what could we get from it?'

Killian looked across at the guards, gesturing with his head. They moved forward, dragging James and Peter away from each other and chaining them to the walls. The strapped down their legs at the ankle, smirking. The two boys glanced at each other, faces determined but worry clear in their eyes. The guards moved away from Peter but one stayed next to James, kneeling down next to him.

'You call yourself enhanced?' Killian smirked, as the guard's eyes lit up, her skin beginning to glow. 'How good's your healing?'

The guard grabbed James' shin, smiling just a bit. Her arm was a terrible orange, pulsing beneath the skin, and white hot. James sucked in breath, trying not to scream, as his trouser leg melted away and his leg was completely exposed to the heat. James' breathing quicken and he tried to back away from the woman. As he did, his arm hit the wall and he cried out, finally beginning to scream at the increasing pain.

'Does it hurt?' Killian said, looking disturbingly interested in James' pain.

James, tears streaming down his face, nodding fervently. 'Yes! Please stop! Please!'

The woman only tightened her grip, grinning. Peter flinched away from James' screams, unable to watch his friend be hurt. James' eyes flashed between colours, changing so fast it was impossible to tell what colour they were.

James had never experienced pain before, not properly anyway. Growing up, he had been the most well protected child there could be. His father had barely put him down his first three or so years of life, only doing so James could learn to walk or if there was danger approaching. He had never broken his bones, never tripped and fell, never gotten hurt. The worse thing that had ever happened to him was accidently being knocked over by one of Bruce's patients when he was five. Before he could cry, Bruce had scooped him up and ran to the outskirts of the village. The run had cheered James up and he had gotten to spend the day with his other dad.

Now all of the missed opportunities for pain were catching up to him and James was struggling to stay conscious. He couldn't faint, the Monstrosity might appear, but he had to somehow stay calm. He almost slipped out of his senses several times, feeling someone else almost take control but he wrestled back before they could do so.

'Stop it!' Peter was shouting as James' gaze drifted out of focus. 'Leave him alone! Please!'

Killian waved a hand and the guard stood up, stepping away. She glanced at Peter, taking a few steps towards him. Killian shook his head, placing a hand on her shoulder.

'Not him.' He said, winking at Peter as if he was suddenly the good guy. 'He can't heal and we can't get much for a broken hero.'

The guard shrugged, the fire in her skin dying out. 'If you're sure. I'll be in the next room over if you need me.'

Her boss smirked, squeezing her shoulder as she left the room. James and Peter stared up at him, one glaring venomously, the other trying and failing to keep the same expression. Killian glanced down at them, eyes drifting over Peter's scarred face and the tears covering James'. He sneered at the younger boy.

'Still feel advanced?' He said. 'You're pathetic, Mr Banner, I hope you know that. If you'd have said yes, had agreed to work for me, you would be perfectly fine right now.'

'You are a monster.' Peter snapped, as the man turned to go. 'We'd never work with you.'

Killian raised an eyebrow, spinning back around and kicking Peter in the stomach. The teenager groaned, bending over slightly.

'Fine, if that's how you want to be.' Killian walked to the door. He paused in the doorway, looking back at them. 'I'm sure someone will pay good money for Spiderman.'

'I'm still going to kill you.' James said, fully managing a murderous look. His eyes were a canopy of colours. Chestnut, sage, azure, russet, jade, all mixed together as he glared. His voice was low, full of rage. 'That's a promise.'

Killian smiled. 'I look forward to it.'

Peter glanced over at James. The eleven-year-old was glaring at the closed door, his breath coming out ragged. Despite the pain he must have been feeling, James just seemed mad.

'James?' Peter said, slowly. 'You're going to be okay, I promise.'

James didn't look over, just continued glaring at the door. If he had turned, Peter wouldn't have seen a speck of green in his eyes. 'I'll be fine, Peter. Just as soon as I break that guy's neck.'

Peter sucked in breath, trying not to react. He turned his head towards the door, closing his eyes and trying to ignore James and his injuries. He wished he could comfort the younger boy but he also wanted to run away from him.

Howie slowly moved the cover of the vent up and rested it beside the opening. Going as slowly as possible, with his prosthetics magnetically attached to the walls of the vent. He cursed his longer hair for flopping down and possibly making him visible to whoever was in the room. He froze, listening for movement below him and ready to push himself backwards. He already had a portal behind him, small but large enough for him to fit through vertically if he squeezed through. He didn't know where the second portal was but he would take his chance with surprising whoever was on the other side. There was no sound below him so he continued to lower himself down, glancing back and forth.

The room was empty apart from one singular person, tied up and faced away from him. FRIDAY had led him to the room and he had assumed she was taking him towards James and Peter or where Tony had been taken. Instead, in front of him was a mass of red hair and the sound of a crying woman.

He unclipped his arm from the wall of the vent, reattaching it to the underside and demagnetising his leg. He tumbled forward, rolling in the air and only staying up thanks to his arm's attachment to the ceiling. He pressed the button on his knuckle and dropped, landing awkwardly with his metal leg. The thing wasn't completely the same as his original and sometimes, although rarely, didn't act how he wanted it to. The static in his ears cut out, the portal apparently gone.

'Pepper?' He said, as quietly as he could while still loud enough for her to hear. She froze, shaking her head slightly.

'You can't be here.' She muttered, sounding terrified. 'This is a trick.'

'No, no, no.' Howie said, looking around for cameras. He wish he had kept his glasses on but he had left them in his bag so they wouldn't fall off his face. 'Pepper, it's me, it's How.'

'Howie?' She said, and he could hear the smile in her voice. He wanted to move forwards, to let her go, but the camera facing her made it impossible. 'You're alive! Does Tony know?'

'No.' Howie frowned, dodging around the room and looking at the files on the side. He squinted at them, again missing his glasses. He managed to catch the word 'Extremis' printed at the top and a stamp that said 'situation critical' but the rest was too blurry for him to make out. 'I've seen him though, he's been captured.'

Pepper sucked in breath as Howie moved behind the camera and into her view. She smiled at him, eyes wide and gleaming with tears. She seemed to be in a lot of pain and parts of her skin seemed to be glowing.

'FRIDAY.' Howie whispered. 'Can you hack the camera? Change the footage?'

'I'm afraid not, sir. The firewall is beyond my decoding abilities.'

'Okay.' He said, looking up and smiling awkwardly at Pepper. He hated that his AI wasn't as advanced as JARVIS yet. FRIDAY could get into the CCTV but couldn't change it in any way. 'Dad will be fine, he's gotten out of worse situations. We need to focus on getting you out of here.'

Pepper shook her head, face pinching. 'You can't Howie, they'll know.'

'Then we'll just have to move fast, won't we?' He smiled weakly at her. 'Are you hurt? How easily can you move?'

She shook her head again. 'They injected me with something, Killian's Extremis thing.'

Howie cursed under his breath. Extremis was probably the thing causing the accidental explosions. If they had captured Tony, it explained why they had injected Pepper. Howie began to panic slightly, knowing it would be incredibly difficult to get her out safely.

'Okay. Okay. Okay, okay, okay. We'll fix this, I promise, I just need to...I need to...'

A portal appeared in front of him, slicing through the camera. He jumped back, the portal growing as he panicked more. Pepper's eyes were widening and Howie took several deep breaths, slowing his heart rate. The portal faded but the camera was broken and an alarm was sounding down the hall.

Howie glanced at the door, face dropping. He dashed forward, trying to pull the bonds holding Pepper off. They wouldn't break and he felt static building in his ears as he fretted. Portals popped up around him, varying in size and shape.

'We've got to go, Pepper, come on.'

She shook her head, even as he managed to get her arm out. She pushed him away, towards the open vent.

'It'll take too long, Howie. Just go, I'll be fine.'

'But Pep-'

'Go Howie.' She said, managing to sound like the CEO of a billion dollar company with tears streaming down her face. 'Help your dad and get out of here.'

'No! I won't leave you.'

'Go. Now!' She practically shouted, glaring at him. She pushed him again, her skin heating up and the force sending him across the room. He stared at her, indecision clear on his face. Someone stomping down the corridor made his mind up and he jumped, just managing to grab hold of the hole.

Howie crawled into the vent, moving as quickly as he could. He concentrated, a tiny portal appearing in front of him, barely big enough for his head to fit through, let alone his whole body. He cursed and got rid of it, pulling himself along on his knees and not caring how much noise he made. When he was suitably far away he stopped, listening for movement. Because of how loud he had been, someone following him wouldn't have bothered to be quiet.

He waited for a good twenty minutes, breathing deeply and being as quiet as possible. Once he was certain no one was coming for him, he moved his backpack around so he could pull his glasses out and swap his left leg for his crutches. His trousers had been ripped enough for the metal to be noticeable and he didn't want anyone using it to identify him. He'd already put his boots and glove in the bag, compacted like his leg. He'd managed to get all the things from James' backpack into his, thankful he had left his photo album and food behind at Peter's apartment.

'FRIDAY, can you tell me where Killian is? Where he's going?'

'I cannot pinpoint him exactly, sir, as he is on the move.' FRIDAY replied, an image appearing on Howie's glasses. A circle was on the map shown, blinking slightly. 'As soon as he stops, I'll inform you.'

Howie nodded, pushing himself through the vents. A map of the building flashed up, showing him the quickest way to go. Howie held his crutches, compacted, and made far less noise without his metal leg hitting the floor.

'Your father is still trapped, sir. Do you want me to lead you to him?'

Howie thought for a second as he got to a grate. His father had suits that could be summoned to him and had been teaching himself martial arts. Pepper had none of that and was sick. He would need to help her.

'No thanks.' Howie said, pulling the grate across. He jumped down, landing awkwardly on one leg. He fell forward, barely catching himself before his face hit the ground. He struggled to his feet, curling up his free trouser leg and extending his crutches. 'Show me the way to Pepper.'

'Of course, sir. The car has stopped but the CCTV is suggesting Mr Killian and the other soldiers are leaving for a while. I will inform you when they return to the oil tanker.'

'Thank you, Fri.'

The map flashed up and Howie headed off, thankful it wasn't an incredibly long walk. He could limp there and wait for whoever turned up. No one would bother him on the way because no one in Miami would like to talk to a homeless kid with one leg.

The journey was longer than he expected, having never taking very long journeys on one leg. He tripped several times, cursing himself and his lack of forethought. If he had brought a spare pair of trousers, life would have been so much easier. When he made it to the tanker, he let out a deep breath, incredibly thankful Killian and the soldiers hadn't arrived yet.

He limped over to the nearest container, pulling the door open awkwardly and limping in. He collapsed, exchanging his crutches for his leg again and pulling on the pieces of his armour. Static was building in his ear and portals, small and large, were forming around him but he was too tired to focus. The last time the portals had moved him, he had wanted to be across country. This time, he was exactly where he needed to be and he hoped he wouldn't wake up somewhere else.

Uneasy, but comforted by the soft light the portals gave off, Howie drifted to sleep, ready for the battle he knew would be coming.