In the Arctic, some fishermen were scouting for something to eat when something came flying down towards them. Looking upward, they noticed that it was the Avengers Quinjet flying in. They have found information that Hulk was sighted in the area and were working their best to find him. They weren't open to the idea that the Hulk could be out there on the loose and still be angry. The last thing that the world needs right now is the Hulk throwing a tantrum. Thor had also concurred he found a trail of giant impacts that led in this direction.
"Good morning, fishermen," Peter greeted them in his Spider-Man attire. "You wouldn't happen to have seen a giant, cranky, green..." Before he could even finish his question, they all pointed in a direction far off from them. "Okay, guess that answers my question."
As soon as the fishermen pointed out the direction, he quickly made his way back to the ship. Everyone boarded the jet while Thor flew outside, preferring to use his own abilities rather than relying on the jet. It was evident that Thor was more comfortable in the open air than in a closed space. The jet had enough space for everyone, and it was equipped with the necessary tools and equipment for their journey. The group was well aware of the dangers that lay ahead, and they made sure to take all the necessary precautions. It was a long journey, and the jet made it easier for everyone to travel, especially those who could not fly. Despite the cold and the harsh conditions, the group was determined to reach their destination.
"This is the coolest thing I've ever done!" Janet cheered from the pilot seat. "I'm driving a jet!"
Peter walked over to her and patted the top of her seat. "Uh, Jan, I'm afraid the ship is on autopilot." He then looked out the window and gasped at the sight of a massive crater. "Whoa, what could have made a hole that big, Hank? A meteor?"
"No," Hank said. "That's the Hulk throwing a temper tantrum."
The Quinjet then landed as they wanted to see if they could find out where Hulk was or where he was heading. Thor was the first to land as Logan, Hank, Peter, and Janet exited the ship and looked around.
"Truly the Hulk's anger is Impressive." Thor complimented as he looked around. "Tell me, Man of Spiders, how do you plan on convincing him to come back with us?"
"Uh...," Peter didn't exactly have an answer for that. "I actually don't know yet. I figured we would locate him first, then work on that part next. You know, a cross that bridge when we come to it kind of thing." He then reached and poked his earpiece. "J, do me a favor and use the suit's sensors to scan for anyone. If Hulk calmed down, there's a slight chance he transformed into Banner."
Thor scoffed at his ways. "Mortal technology. You would do better to trust your eyes and ears."
"Wait, I'm picking something up," Peter said in surprise. "It's a heat signal." He then looked over to Thor and squinted his eye lenses a little. "Which is strange since I can't see or hear it."
Then it became sort of a staring contest between the two of them as Thor wasn't amused by his quip and Peter wasn't okay with the statement. Janet, however, shrank down and flew into the crater to see what she could find out.
"Okay, if this is going to turn out to be some sort of evil snow monster, then I-" Janet was shocked by something that she ended up smacked into some ice. She then flew back a little and was shocked by the sight. It was a circular shield with red and white rings leading to a star in the center. "Uh...Pete...are you seeing what I'm seeing?"
Peter approached Janet and was left speechless by what he saw. "Oh, my god!" What he saw shook him, Logan, and even Hank to the core. Thor wasn't sure what he was seeing, so he wasn't as surprised or amazed as the others. "It's Captain America," he said. The shield was attached to the back of the old World War Two super soldier. "And according to what I'm seeing…he's alive."
World War Two
Captain America was currently making his way across a gigantic airplane that had taken off from a fortress in the Arctic. He marched his way through the ship and was ready to finally finish this war and end the terror of the Red Skull. He kicked open the door and found silence. He stepped cautiously towards the control platform.
When he managed to get close enough to the pilot's seat, he was shocked to see that it was empty. Suddenly, he heard what sounded like the charging of a HYDRA pistol and saw, in the reflection, that the Red Skull was right behind him. He quickly turned just in time to raise his shield and block the attack before running behind the chair for cover. The shield sent the shot ricocheting off and hitting the window, causing the wind to gust through the cockpit.
"You don't give up, do you?" Red Skull asked as he fired again.
Steve used the brief window of opportunity to run up towards Red Skull and knocked the gun out of his hands. Red Skull swung to try and hit Steve, but he managed to put him in a chokehold first.
"You're too late, Captain," Red Skull stated. "The war is over. You lost."
"No, not yet!" Steve knew he would have to sacrifice his life for the world.
Steve then used his shield and threw it while keeping Red Skull in the headlock. When the shield hit the controls, it not only broke them but also sent the ship into a downward spiral and caused it to take a nosedive into the ice glaciers.
Present day
With Thor's assistance, Logan carefully made his way through the icy terrain, searching for Steve, who was lost and frozen in the snow. After a while, they finally found him and quickly brought him back to the Quinjet, where they began the process of thawing him out. They had to be extremely careful, as they knew that any mistake could endanger Steve's life.
Peter, who was an expert in medical procedures, was closely monitoring Steve's condition as they worked on him. Meanwhile, Hank was piloting the Quinjet, carefully navigating through the treacherous weather conditions.
Jarvis, the onboard AI assistant, was working at full capacity to de-thaw Steve using every tool at his disposal. He had to divert all his power to this task, which meant he couldn't use autopilot, making Hank's job even more challenging.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they were able to successfully revive Steve, who was now breathing and conscious again. They were all relieved and grateful that they were able to save their friend's life.
"I can't believe it," Peter whispered in shock as Steve was de-thawing. "Captain America." Then he noticed some slight movement, causing him to back off so he would give him some space. "He's waking up."
"Is his brain okay?" Janet asks.
"Scans showed everything was perfectly fine," Logan guessed as he looked at the screens. "I think," he said.
Peter asked, "Captain, are you alright?" as he approached him.
Steve then gasped as he woke up and rescued as many people as possible. Peter didn't even have a moment to think; all of a sudden, Steve smacked him in the face with his shield. Peter was hit so hard he was slammed into the Quinjet controls, even knocking Hank into the broken wheel.
The Quinjet was now stuck in gliding motion to keep it from crashing into the city. Luckily, Peter had programmed some special protocols just in case moments like these were to ever occur. Then Steve used his shield to smack into Thor, sending him toppling towards the chairs.
"Whoa, hey, hang on." Janet tried to calm him down. "Everything-"
Janet shrieked when Steve crawled to his feet and shoved the table, trying to hit her with it. Luckily, she was fast enough to shrink and fly to avoid getting crushed.
"What are you?" Steve asks Janet. "One of Zola's experiments?"
Then Logan leaped and grabbed Steve from his back, keeping him in a headlock. He didn't want to hurt the living legend unless it became inevitable. But right now, he just wanted to try and de-escalate the situation.
"Listen, captain, this is going to be hard to hear, but you've been frozen in ice for decades," Logan said as he tried to hold Steve back.
"You're creative, I'll give you that much!" Steve exclaimed as he grabbed Logan by the arm, flung him around, and smacked him onto the table. "Where have you taken me? Where's Schmidt?"
"Calm yourself, captain," Thor said as he approached Steve. "As the metal-boned one says, you are among friends."
Steve didn't seem to believe him though, as he spun and used his shield to hit Thor back, following it up with an elbow to his gut. He then threw Thor towards Hank and the controls, once again leaving a massive crater behind.
"Great," Peter groaned as he saw the destruction. "Sue and Reed are going to kill me."
As the Quinjet started to crash into the bay of National City, Steve managed to open the platform and managed to make it onto the coastline of the city. He splashed into the water, but it was only a small swimming distance, compared to the rest of the team still stuck in the Quinjet.
Luckily, by the time he managed to crawl back to shore, the DEO had responded to the crashing Quinjet. There were many people left bewildered by the fact Captain America was standing before them. Steve wasn't sure what was going on, but he would fight his way out if he needed to.
"At ease, soldier," Hank Henshaw called out, getting his attention. He had agents Natasha and Barton by his side. Steve looked towards him and was a little confused as to what was going on. Hank approached Steve and sighed. "When Parker sent the report, I wasn't sure if he was telling the truth."
"My God! It's really him!" Clint exclaimed in shock as he saw the super soldier was alive.
Natasha said, "I don't know why, but I always pictured him as being shorter."
"What?" Steve wasn't sure he was following.
"Look, I'm sorry for the lack of subtly from those guys, but they mean well. They're just not the best to break the kind of news like this." Hank explains to the Captain.
"Break what?" Steve was still not following.
"You see, you've been asleep, Captain," Hank explained to him. "For almost 70 years."
Steve was shocked when he heard that and looked around at the strange advancements in technology he could see, such as cell phones and projection boards. He was still filled with sorrow and grief when he looked down at his shield and recalled the thought of missing out on seventy years of his life.
"You gonna be okay?" Hank asks.
"Yeah," Steve said as he was trying to get his head on straight. The last thing he remembered; the world was still at war when he went to sleep. Now it was like he woke up to a completely different reality. "It's just...I had a date."
Out on the bay, Hank Pym grew and enlarged himself to rescue everyone from the crashed plane. Cupping his hands, he held everyone in his hands to prevent them from drowning. When he reached the beach, he leaned down and opened his hands so that everyone could climb out of his hands, before finally shrinking down to normal size.
"Wel...welcome back, Captain," Peter said as he stood and gave him a salute.
Hank sighed and gave Steve a pat on the back to move him toward the DEO cars. "Please, Captain, follow me."
Vicky Vale was currently hard at work writing a story about the recent news of Captain America being brought back to life. It was now the talk of the century. The World War Two hero that was thought dead for years had risen from the dead. Even she put the Avengers talk on hold for now, seeing that the resurrected Captain America was bigger news right now.
While she was working, she suddenly noticed the room had begun to smell terrible. Wondering what could have caused it, she glanced behind her to see Peter approaching, noticing that he appeared to be covered in sand.
"Phew, you smell like a wet dog," Vicky informed Peter. "Why do you smell so bad?"
"You don't know the lengths I went to so you could have these photos," Peter said as he placed his drenched camera on the table. Vicky picked it up and recognized the smell of the ocean immediately. "I managed to salvage a few photos."
"What happened? Did you fall into the ocean?" Vicky asked as she stood up and dusted off the sand from her suit. "Man, you really do go to extremes when it comes to these photos, don't you?"
"It's kind of what they expect of me these days," Peter said. He sighed as he looked over the camera and wondered if he could fix it. Keeping it on the Quinjet had been his first mistake, but he had been in a rush after learning of where the Hulk might be. He knew he needed to get to work immediately after checking in at the Arctic and didn't exactly expect to pick a fight with Captain America. "I'm going to need a new camera now."
"Shouldn't be so hard, what's wrong about that?" Vicky saw his sorrowful face.
"It was my uncle's," said Peter, explaining why he was so close to the camera. "Last thing I have of his."
Vicky was shocked to hear this, as she had never heard Peter's story about his uncle's death. "Oh...I...I'm sorry."
"No, it's okay," Peter said as he dropped the camera in the garage. "It's not of much use to me anymore."
They heard the elevator ding and Cat Grant exited the elevator. She took a few steps off of the elevator and almost gagged at the smell.
"What the heck is that smell?" Cat asked as she looked around the room. "Did someone take a bath in the ocean? I've never smelled anything that bad since I was invited to an after-party for the Arizona Cardinals." She sniffed again and then looked directly at Peter. "Parker, what the hell were you thinking coming here with that stench? Are you trying to kill me?"
"Sorry, just thought I'd bring in the photos from the scene," said Peter, defending his decision to come in.
"Well, now that you have, go home and drench yourself in soap," Cat told him. "And don't come back until you've relieved yourself of the stench."
Peter sighed and knew he could use a bath. "Alright." He strolled past Vicky. "See you later, Vick."
Vicky felt sorry for Peter, and she also felt a little bit of envy. He went through so much for his job, and in the end, he lost a family heirloom of sorts and got kicked out of the building. But she had to admit, being told by her boss to go home and take a bath did sound like a relaxing time.
As Peter left toward the elevator, she looked and saw the camera thrown in the trash. Pulling the device out, she noticed there was a blurred picture on the glitched screen. It was what had to be a young Peter, and she had to admit he did look pretty cute. An older man she assumed was his uncle stood next to him.
An idea formed in her head as she placed the camera in her bag and made her way towards the elevators. To anyone watching, it seemed like she was heading out for a story, but it was really something a little more personal.
Steve Rogers was brought to the DEO and was being checked over by their best doctors. Doctor Joshua Allen was looking over the Super Soldier and making sure to be as delicate as possible since he was dealing with a living legend. He drew some blood, not noticing that he had managed to draw a small protoplasmic creature from the blood sample.
"The world has certainly changed since I've been asleep," Steve muttered as he saw Hank, Clint, and Natasha watching over him. Hank was with him, and the two agents were keeping him safe. Even though they were in their most secure headquarters, they were surrounded by dozens of fans of the living legend who inspired them all. "But we won the war, right?"
"All thanks to you, Captain," Hank said with pride. "Your sacrifice led the Allies to victory in the war."
"So, HYDRA is gone?" Steve asks.
Clint and Natasha both shared glances as they happened to overheard the question. They knew that HYDRA was still out there considering they've fought dozens of HYDRA agents together.
"It's...complicated," Hank admitted. "You have been gone for a long time. A lot you need to learn about."
Steve sighed as he laid back into the chair. "At least it wasn't all for nothing." He then looked out the window and got a clear vision of the city. "But what kind of world am I in now?"
While they were talking, Dr. Allen was looking over the blood when the small protoplasm leaped from the blood and fused itself with the doctor. However, all the doctor himself felt was a slight pinch in his finger, causing him to groan and take a few steps back. Almost immediately, the doctor felt dizzy and rushed to the restroom. When he reached there, he took off his glove and noticed that it was glowing a faint shade of purple.
"What the hell?"
Peter swung through the city as he made his way back to the Avengers Mansion. Since his boss had given him the day off, he figured he could take the time to officially wash his suit and maybe get a shower in. He stank and seriously needed to get clean. It would also be nice; he hadn't taken any personal time off in a while. Every time he got a day off, he managed to either break a bone or exhaust himself so much that he slept the entire day away.
But when he was swinging, he managed to hear screams and quickly stop. He grabbed onto the nearest wall and looked around to see if he could discern what was happening. When he saw a dozen people running away in a certain direction, he decided that was the best course of action.
Peter went swinging in and saw the DEO Doctor Allen was clutching onto a deceased corpse that was on the ground. From the look of things, it looked like the body was drained of blood and all life. Almost like the person was deceased for years. Peter reached over and was ready to summon the other Avengers using his watch, but he would try and fight him while he waited for them to arrive.
"Avengers, assemble," Peter muttered to the watch. "I have a feeling that you picked the wrong day to do that, Buddy. Whatever you're doing."
The doctor then turned to face Peter, revealing that his veins were now glowing purple, and so were his eyes. Peter felt his senses alert him to something dangerous, obviously linked to the purple eyes. But when he went in for the punch, that's when he realized his mistake. When he tried to punch him, Doctor Allen managed to grab his fist and it almost felt like he was draining the energy from Peter.
"Ugh!" Peter cried as he felt his energy leaving his body. "What the hell?"
"I must feed..." he snarled, sounding almost demonic.
"Hey!" Janet came flying in as she shot at Dr. Allen, her stingers not even having any effect. In fact, it was having a very different effect than she expected, considering that it was like Dr. Allen was actually absorbing the blasts. "Let him go!" She flew in and quickly grew to her normal size to try and kick him, ending with Dr. Allen getting toppled backward. "Spidey, you okay?"
Peter groaned as when he was let go, he dropped to his knees and was short of breath and weak after what happened. When he looked upward, he was shocked and terrified when he saw Dr. Allen approaching. Peter tried to warn Janet of him approaching her, but he could barely speak since he was too weak.
By the time Janet was able to put together what he was saying, she turned around and was grabbed at the neck. Dr. Allen began to drain the energy from her body as she tried to shoot free of his grasp. All it ended up doing was ending with her losing all her strength to even hold her fists up to keep shooting. Janet tried to shrink and escape, but it only hardened the doctor's grip on her, keeping her from escaping.
Yet before he could majorly drain too much energy from her life, someone came in and sliced off his arm, causing Janet to topple and drop onto the ground unconscious. Logan seemed to have made it to the scene and was quick to work on saving them. He drew his second claw and was ready to strike the assailant with all his strength. But to his shock, he watched as the doctor regrew his arm, but it didn't come back human. This new arm was completely purple and almost looked like it was made out of some ooze substance.
Logan then took a few steps back as he watched the ooze spreading all across the doctor's body, almost like it was becoming a second skin to him. Then he began to mutate, growing stronger and it was like he was transforming due to the energy that he had drained.
As his eyes and body began to glow purple, Hank finally made it to the screen as he stomped on Dr. Allen like it was a bug. Hank wasn't okay with violence, but he felt like whatever this was could survive being crushed under his foot. If anything, it was just to disorient it so that they could figure out what to do. But Hank then began to feel weak as he grew dizzy, and his foot was beginning to glow purple. Logan watched as Hank shrank down, trying not to crash into the dozens of people or buildings they were around.
"Oh, shit," Logan muttered in terror.
Dr. Allen was covered in purple goo, a monster's face became clear as sharp teeth came out of his mouth. He was also beginning to grow so he was now three times the size of Logan. He took a few more steps back as he was wondering how he was supposed to fight this thing.
As this parasitic creature charged right for the Wolverine, a hammer came flying and smashed into Dr. Allen. He was sent smashing into the wall, sending him into the next building over. Logan looked and saw it was Thor who had come flying down and landed beside his comrade.
"What kind of beast was that?" Thor asks in surprise. "It is as hideous as the trolls of Middle Earth."
Logan quickly looked over to the unconscious Spider-Man. "Well, now we know he isn't well. There's no way he could have resisted making a quip about that."
"What has happened to them?" Thor asked as he walked over to his fallen friends. "What dark magic is this?"
"I think that creature was drawing the energy from their bodies." Logan took an educated guess when he saw the condition Hank was in. "I think we better call the DEO, there's no telling-"
Before Logan could finish his thought Parasite managed to sneak up on them and wrapped his arm around Logan's neck. Logan tried to use his claws to free himself, but since he was being held with his face facing outward, there was no way he could claw his arm off to get free.
"Put him down, you vile creature!" Thor demanded as he spun his hammer, this time summoning lightning along with it. "Have at thee!"
But this time, when Thor threw the hammer, he managed to not only dodge the hammer but stretch out to grab Thor. Without his hammer, those couldn't fly or move fast enough for when the parasite grabbed him with his other arm. Logan and Thor tried to free themselves, but this creature seemed to be almost unkillable.
Luckily for them, the DEO was already sending agents in as several cars drove in and dozens of agents opened up and opened fire on the creature. The bullets seemed to finally have some effect as he screeched and ended up dropping the Avengers before making a run for it into the smoke.
Carol ran over and tried to check the pulse on the Mutant. "We've got agents down!"
Steve stood by the window gazing out at the sprawling cityscape in front of him. Natasha approached him with a sense of empathy, knowing full well the man was going through a tough time. They offered him a comfortable bedroom within the DEO premises to make him feel at ease until they could come up with a permanent solution to help him adjust to his new surroundings. Steve was a man who had suddenly found himself in a completely unfamiliar world, and the enormity of the situation was not lost on him.
"Hey, you doing okay?" Natasha asks him.
"I shouldn't have ever woken up." Steve sighed as he saw how advanced the world had become without him. "I'm a soldier, not some future man." He looked over to the shield he left on his bed as he didn't feel like he was a soldier anymore. I can't imagine a work that's changed so much still needs Captain America."
"You'd be surprised." Natasha broke to him.
Then they watched as dozens of agents were running around, seemingly heading someplace. Natasha looked down the hallway and was confused about what was happening. Steve approached as well as he looked down the hall and wondered where everyone was running towards.
"What's going on?" Steve wonders.
The Avengers were moved to the DEO to keep their identities from going public, as well as try to help them. All of them had separate needs and skill sets to help keep them alive. Henshaw sighed as he looked over all their assets were taken down by one creature. If they couldn't stop this thing, there was no telling what was going to happen.
"Agent Barton, give me some good news." Henshaw sighed as he eyed the agent.
"Not much," Clint said. "Whatever it was, it attacked them and drained a lot of their energy. Physically and mentally, they're all lucky to be in a coma and not dead."
"A lot of people in this city are going to be unless we figure out whatever the hell that creature was." Henshaw knew if that could almost kill these guys, it could easily kill people. "Any leads?"
"None." Clint was sorry to say. "Whatever this thing is, it's something new."
Then they saw as Natasha and Steve walked into the room, both of them seemingly worried about the Avengers. "Hey, we just got the news. Any leads?" She asks.
"None. We don't have anything in the records about a parasitic creature that can infect people." Henshaw was sorry to tell two of his best agents.
Steve however had a different idea when he approached the comatose heroes and noticed what happened to them. "This isn't new." He muttered, immediately recognizing what happened to them. "This is the work of Parasite."
"Parasite?" Henshaw was confused. "You know something about this, Captain?"
"I fought something like this during the war," Steve explained, looking at their vitals on the screen. "It was the result of one of Zemo's monstrous experiments. It's a parasitic creature that can attach itself to any soldier and use it to drain the life force from other people, electrical equipment, anything with energy, giving itself an energy boost."
"So, the more he absorbs, the stronger he gets." Natasha was following along with what Steve was saying.
"You know how to defeat this thing?" Henshaw asks Steve.
"Me and Bucky did it by keeping our distance from it," Steve explains how they fought it. "If you corner him, keep your distance, and you can make Parasite drain his own energy, it will weaken him."
"You get that?" Henshaw tells Nat and Clint.
"On it; don't touch, hit hard," Clint compiled.
"We could always use a hand," Natasha said to Steve. "What do you say, Captain America?"
Steve looked down at the heroes and knew that they seemed to really need his help. He was a Man out of Time, but it seems like he's what this city needs right now to protect it so there was a tomorrow. He sighed and remembered that his old uniform was currently ripped to shreds.
"Anyone has a spare outfit I could use?" Steve asks.
Parasite, now fully charged and filled with energy, continued to search for more so that he could become even more powerful. He attacked the people on the streets. Everyone ran left and right, trying their hardest to escape him as he ripped open a car hood and attempted to drain the energy from the battery. However, this attempt failed when Parasite lost control of the energy and crushed the battery in his hand.
Dozens of the people ended up tripping as they ran and being shoved by dozens of people trying to escape with their lives. Vichy had made her way to the scene as she just happened to be downtown at the time. She was trying to get close, but she was pushed and shoved until finally hit the ground by the trampling stamp. Parasite noticed she was on the ground, causing Vicky to try and crawl backward to escape.
"Help!" Vicky cried out in terror as she backed away from the approaching Parasite. The creature reached out toward her. "Help!" Closing her eyes, she realized there was nowhere left for her to run. "Please!"
Before Parasite could touch her, however, all of a sudden, a shield came flying through the air and smacked the Parasite in the face. The Parasite stopped his approach on Vicky and turned around, where he saw Steve Rogers, now donning a cleaner version of his Captain America suit.
"Parasite!" Steve called out the creature. "It's been a long time since I've seen your ugly mug."
"Captain America." Parasite snarled when he saw the hero was alive. "You have come back to die!"
Parasite then charged towards Steve, and he quickly threw his shield, this time going for his stomach. But that wasn't enough as Parasite had grown too strong for him to fight off alone. Parasite charged and kicked the shield as he went to grab the Captain by the neck. Steve was however fast enough to at least dodge that attack and went between his legs. Then he turns around to punch him in the back, sending Parasite forward a little.
Stumbling around, he was then surrounded by several arrows that came out of nowhere. When all of the arrows started to beep, it seemed to confuse the parasite even further until they eventually exploded. The explosion ended up causing a smokescreen and gave Steve an opening to run in with his shield head-on as a ram. When he reached Parasite, Steve slammed the shield into him, causing vibrational feedback that sent Parasite flying into the wall. Several tons of bricks began to fall on top of him, a ton of energy being drained to shield him from the crush.
Vicky was still in the middle of it and was shocked by what she saw. Looking toward the living legend Captain America, she was amazed to see how tall and amazing he was. "I suppose, this isn't a good time to ask for an interview."
"Yeah, might not be the best time." Steve agreed when Parasite came charging back at him.
Before Parasite could take a swing at him, another arrow came flying and embedded itself into Parasite's chest. The arrow exploded, giving Steve yet another opening to run in and raise his shield. As Parasite hit his shield, Steve could feel him weakening. Their plan was working. Steve then ducked under Parasite's arm as he swung to try and hit the Captain.
As Parasite spun around again, Clint ran in and dropped to his knees, shooting a freezing arrow at it. The arrow hit Parasite in the arm, instantly freezing it solid, allowing Steve to run up and punch it, breaking the arm like glass. Parasite screeched in pain as he didn't seem to have the energy to start growing his arm back. That means that their plan was working and fighting them was indeed draining him of energy.
Growing impatient with these heroes, Parasite came charging at them, only to be shot in the back with what felt like a taser. When he turned back, Natasha was standing in the middle of the street near Vicky with her palm in a fist position and her Widow Bites aimed towards Parasite.
"Hi." Natasha gave him a friendly smile.
She didn't waste any time before shooting off several more Widow Bites. They were luckily quick with draining energy, so she was able to weaken him enough for his powers to be used in the process. When Parasite charged towards Natasha, Steve threw his shield, and it bounced off his back.
Parasite then stopped charging at Natasha and turned towards Steve in anger. His fingers began to turn into claws, and he charged to use them against the captain. But that was when Clint came from across the street and shot several explosive arrows. The arrows made contact and blew up right on his back, getting his attention drawn towards the archer.
"You know, I think we're really starting to piss him off," Clint said, and he had to admit, he was enjoying it.
"Good!" Steve cried as he threw the shield again, it bounced off and angered the Parasite. "If we anger him enough, it will cause him to explode!"
"How much angrier can it get?" Natasha asks as she shoots several more Widow Bites. And as if she was some sort of psychic, the Parasite creature was beginning to glow and crack up. "Okay, forget I asked."
"Keep it up, soldiers!" Steve cried as he threw the shield again, smacking against Parasite's head. "This fight is just about over."
Parasite found himself trapped in a relentless cycle of getting hit repeatedly by the three heroes. With each blow, he felt his strength dwindling and his body weakening. The once formidable villain was now reduced to a fragile shell of his former self. Despite his best efforts to fight back and escape, Parasite was unable to withstand the onslaught of attacks for long. Finally, with a loud and violent explosion, he disintegrated into a cloud of purple smoke, leaving behind nothing but a faint, acrid odor.
Clint coughed as he covered his mouth. "Uh, there's no chance we can get affected by this stuff, right?"
"No, you'd need to have been in direct contact with him," Steve assured him.
"In that case, I'd wash that shield if I were you." Natasha joked as she lowered her arms.
As the group stood in the city, the sound of applause echoed through the streets, reaching their ears and filling them with a sense of joy and accomplishment. The people of the city welcomed them with open arms, especially when they caught sight of the great Captain America standing among them. Steve couldn't help but feel a sense of pride swell within him as he realized that even after all these years, he still had what it took to be a hero. He stood tall, a beacon of hope and inspiration for all those around him, a symbol of everything good and right in the world. The cheers of the crowd only made him more determined to continue fighting for justice and freedom, to be the hero that the world so desperately needed.
It took a few hours of rest, but the Avengers managed to finally wake up and were informed of what they missed. Sitting on the couch in the Avengers Mansion, Peter was shocked when he saw the news and got full footage of the fight. Cat was not going to be happy with Peter because he couldn't get pictures for her to use in her papers.
"So, fighting parasitic creatures, alongside an archer and an assassin." Peter recapped Steve's first day back. "Was that what it was like fighting evil in the 40s?"
"No," Steve said as he smiled and turned to Peter. "Sometimes it got strange."
Peter was amazed when he heard that Steve had made a quip. "Captain America has a sense of humor. Wow, that was left out of the history books."
"For the best. From what I hear, you are the quipster around here." Steve replied.
"Who said that? Was it Thor?" Peter questioned.
"It's the sort of feeling I got off you," Steve explains. "And please, call me Steve."
Peter nodded and then reached up to his mask, removing it to show his face to the soldier. "Then you should call me Peter. Peter Parker."
"Parker?" Steve smiled with a nod. "Great to meet you."
Peter then remembered something and reached down to the desk. "Almost forgot. This is for you."
Steve took the photo and saw it was one of him and Peggy back in the day. He smiled as he was happy to have a reminder of his past. "Thanks, Peter." He spoke.
"You're sort of a lot of our inspirations around here," Peter informed him with a smile. "We all looked up to you and what you've done for the world."
"That was a long time ago." Steve reminded him. "Thanks for the photo, it's all I really have."
Peter then reached his hand out to shake. "Not true. There are a lot of criminals still on the loose. And who knows when HYDRA will eventually resurface? You have a place here, Steve, with us, the Avengers."
Steve looked down at his hand and saw that he was genuine about this offer. "I'd be honored to join." He then shook Peter's hand. "But I didn't stop him alone. Those other Agents."
"Yeah, they show potential for becoming members," Peter nodded as he also considered Clint and Natasha. "But since they are DEO Agents, the best I could talk Director Henshaw into was allowing them as part-time members for now."
"That is something for now, I guess." Steve was happy to help out the ones who helped him fight off Parasite.
The Watcher nodded as he saw this world was flourishing. "At least one reality is safe..."
The following day, Peter arrived at his workplace at CatCo and noticed that everyone was still engrossed in their work, trying to cover the aftermath of the peculiar events that occurred the previous day. The news was abuzz with reports of a costumed superhero in his 40s and a parasitic creature that had caused quite a stir. As he walked towards Vicky's desk, he couldn't help but notice how focused she was, typing away furiously, documenting her firsthand experience of the surreal incident that took place on the field.
"Hard at work or hardly working?" Peter joked as he approached Vicky.
Vicky was shocked when she saw him and grabbed him. "Oh, Peter, I was worried that you were caught in the Parasite attack."
"Nah, I was home with my aunt," Peter assured her. Technically it was true since he went home to his aunt after that close call. "Nothing happened, but I did see what happened on the news. Would have called, but it was a long day."
"No, no worries. I just wanted to give you this." Vicky said as she handed Peter a box. Peter was a little confused when she handed it to him and closed her computer. "I gotta go and get my story printed. Hoping for pictures for the next one."
As Vicky left, Peter couldn't help but chuckle in anticipation of what she had gotten him. He eagerly reached down to open the beautifully wrapped box, and his heart skipped a beat in happiness as he pulled out his uncle's camera, which he had thought was lost forever. The camera had been expertly restored, and as he examined it closely, he was amazed to see that it was indeed the same one since he saw the scratches that he caused when he used to play with it as a child. As he admired the camera, Peter noticed a small note tucked inside, and he quickly unfolded it to read what it said.
'Family relics should never be replaced. I had a guy that owed me one and fixed it as good as he could. Consider it a gift from a friend. We are friends, right?'
Peter chuckled at the question as if she needed to ask. Yes, she was indeed his friend. If anything, this was going to be a reminder of their friendship now it's only because of her he has it back.