Dimitri stops the bus outside of their hotel in Prague, they walk in and the hotel is nice.
"Whoa." Ned and Peter gasped.
Mr. Harrington says the squeaky wheel gets the upgrade grease.
"That's one hell of an upgrade." Sam said.
Mr. Harrington tells everyone to get settled in and rest because they're going to go to the carnival of lights.
"That sounds fun." Peter said. "Not as fun as a peaceful vacation and Paris would have been, but fun nonetheless."
Peter gets a phone call from Maria who tells him to put on the earpiece that's with his new suit and await further instruction.
Peter hangs up. Ned rushes over to him and apologizes for it seeming like he's preoccupied with his relationship.
"No Ned don't- don't worry about it. At least one of us is enjoying his vacation, right?" Peter asked. He really didn't want Ned to worry, he should be with Betty having fun with the rest of their class.
Ned says he's still Peter's guy in the chair.
"The best guy in a chair." Peter said. He was a little weary about Ned finding out, but in a way it was almost a blessing. He didn't have to be Spider-Man alone anymore, after Ned found out, he'd had someone he could talk about everything with and that really helped.
Peter tells him not to worry about it.
Ned asks about the status on the elementals and where the next attack is happening.
Peter says it's happening in the city.
"I get that you tried to make it as easy for him to help out as you could, but did you really have to put them all smack dab in the middle of the same city where the attack would be?" Natasha asked.
Ned reminds him that they're in the city.
"Right where you shouldn't be." May said. She definitely had some choice words for Fury now. Who did he think he was endangering a bunch of kids like that?
"Not to mention they're going to the carnival of lights. They'll be outdoors. In the danger." Steve added.
Peter says he's figuring it out.
Ned begs Peter to do something because they're all counting on him.
"Jeez, no pressure." Sam commented, sarcastically.
"I don't know what I can do, Ned." Peter spoke.
As Ned re-joins the group, Mr. Harrington tells them that they all have their own rooms.
"At least some of them get to enjoy their vacation." Peter sighed, frustrated.
In a control room, Peter is distracted. Fury gets his attention and says the Elemental will be there in a few hours and asks if they're boring him.
Beck says Peter isn't board he's thinking about how they kidnapped him.
"Got it in one." Peter said. "Can he read minds, too?"
Fury says Peter had obstacles so he removed them.
"Obstacles? I had a planned vacation that you hijacked. I told you no and you still dragged me into this mess against my wishes." Peter said. Why does no one ever think about what he wants? Since people started finding out that he's Spider-Man, they keep trying to make decisions for him and if they don't do that then they try and persuade him to make those decisions anyway.
Maria says officials still won't evacuate the city.
"You'd think the prospect of being attacked by sentient fire would persuade them, but I guess not." Maria said.
Fury calls them idiots and asks Peter what the plan is.
Peter says he'll be in the cathedral tower keeping watch for the fire monster and he'll radio them when it shows up he and Beck-
Beck cuts him off, saying his name is Mysterio.
"He-he's keeping the name?" Peter asked. "That's a little strange."
"I guess he liked it or maybe he feels more comfortable with a secret identity?" Ned suggested. "Though I don't know why he'd need it, his helmet hides his face."
Peter says that's when he and Mysterio will move in.
Mysterio tells Peter that the only hope they have is to stop the monster there and now no matter the cost.
"If you let it go, it'll grow stronger and it'll destroy the world." Rhodey said. "Made it clear the first time."
Mysterio tells him to maneuver it away from civilians if he can and, more importantly, keep it away from metal because if it gets too big it'll draw power from Earth's core and after that, they can't stop it.
"Metal makes it stronger?" Steve asked.
"Metal is a conductor of heat. If the fire monster get's hotter it'll get stronger." Shuri said, it made sense to her even if she thought that some of it was a little far fetched. But they were dealing with mythological monster created from the elements so maybe nothing is too far fetched.
Peter says his friends are and he can't help but think that they're putting them in danger.
"That's probably because they are in danger." May said, glaring at Fury.
Fury comments about him being worried about them hurting his friends and reminds him that Peter ordered a drone strike on his classmates.
"That was a complete accident." Peter said, trying to defend himself.
"Don't change the subject. You were the one who wouldn't leave him alone. You were the one that dragged them all to Prague and you were the one that put them up in the city. So yes, you are putting them all in danger." May said.
Fury says Tony gave him a multi-billion-dollar AR tactical intelligence system, and the first thing he did with it was try and blow up his friends.
"Fury." Natasha warned. "Maybe you should stop."
Fury says it's clear to him that Peter isn't ready for this.
"He's sixteen of course he isn't ready for this and he shouldn't have to be!" May yelled. "So I would appreciate it if you would lay off him, please."
Peter sits alone on the roof. Mysterio joins him and says Fury asked him to come see how Peter was doing because he felt bad for snapping.
"What?" Clint asked. That was not Fury-like behavior. He doesn't care about hurt feelings and he cares less about hurting other people's feelings.
Peter is shocked. Mysterio asks if they have sarcasm on this Earth then asks Peter how he's feeling.
Peter says he didn't think he'd have to save the world this summer.
"You never do." Steve agreed. "I just happens that way sometimes."
Peter says he knows it makes him sound like a jerk and he says he has a plan with this girl that he likes now its all ruined.
"You're not a jerk for being upset that you vacation's over, Peter." May said. "You're allowed to want to have a break and you're allowed to take one, don't let anyone make you feel differently about that. If they do, you come to me, okay? You're not a jerk for wanting to have a normal life."
Mysterio tells Peter that he isn't a jerk for wanting a normal life.
May blinked in surprise, not expecting to give Peter the same assurance that Beck did.
Mysterio says it's a hard path and they see things, do things, make choices, people look up to them and even if they win a battle sometimes they die.
Peter flashed back to watching the deaths of Vision. Of Gamora. Of Natasha and Mr. Stark. They all risked and sacrificed their lives to ensure a better future for the rest of them. They won, but it still felt like they lost. Sometimes the price is too much but- but somehow it still gets paid no matter how much it hurts, no matter what they have to lose. Sometimes he really felt like he wasn't cut out for this.
Mysterio calls Peter a good kid and says part of him wants to tell Peter to turn around and run away from it all and there's another part that knows what's they're about to fight and what's at stake and says he's glad Peter's with says he is too. Mysterio says Peter's worried about his friends.
"Of course I'm worried about them. They could all die when this monster finally shows up." Peter said, worry increasing with every stressful second of waiting that went by. Fury said it was only a matter of hours and Mysterio said that this was the strongest of the 4. How could they ever hope to beat it?
Peter says he feels like he's always putting them in danger.
Peter sighed. He felt that way now, especially after what happened at the Washington Monument. It seemed like the people around him were always in danger, one way or another.
Mysterio advises him to get them inside to a safe place for a few hours.
"Even better if you can make it an activity to do, keep their suspicions down." Tony added.
Peter says it's nice to have someone to talk to about Superhero stuff.
Peter found that he agreed with his on-screen self. He had Ned and May now to talk to about these things which was great, he loved that he could confide in them about Spider-Man stuff but it wasn't the same. It's great having them to talk to but they don't read understand it all, and how stressful it can be sometimes. He thinks it be nice to talk to someone who gets that.
Mysterio says of they make it out of this Peter will have all summer to kill Brad.
"No... I'm not gonna kill Brad. He's still my classmate, yes he's an ass but he doesn't deserve to die." Peter said, shutting that down before it could become anything.
They say their goodbyes and Peter drops down from the roof. He says 'excuse me' in Italian, to some people before apologizing, in English, for using Italian.
"For future reference, it's 'promiňte.' Natasha offered.
"Thanks." Peter said.
Peter digs out the EDITH glasses and puts them on before telling her that he needs a way to keep his friends inside for a few hours.
In their hotel, the group is prepared to go to the light carnival. Mr. Harrington tells them that they're going to the opera instead. The kids are less than excited.
"What? The opera can be fun." Peter said, as though he were trying to get everyone on board with it.
"Only to a very specific type of people and we are not that specific type of people." Ned said.
MJ asks what happened to the carnival.
Mr. Harrington says this is upgrade living and says the tour company gave them the tickets for free and he asks the class if they know how much opera tickets cost.
"I don't really think they care that much." Strange said.
"They're just upset they're not going to the carnival." Happy added.
Flash says they don't because none of them have ever wanted to see an opera ever.
"He's right." MJ said. Peter and Ned both gave her Strange looks. "What? He is right."
Ned says he thinks it would be culturally enriching.
"Thanks, buddy." Peter said, grateful that Ned was trying to get everyone to come around to the idea. And even if he couldn't get everyone on board, Peter knew that Betty would at least come around to the idea because she and Ned seem to agree on everything now.
Mr. Harrington says this might be the best 4 hours of their trip. The students aren't
"Four hours!?" MJ and Ned shouted.
"I'd rather fight the fire monster." MJ said.
"It may not be the best situation... I'll admit, but at least you guys will, hopefully, be safe there." Peter tried. He wondered if EDITH could have given him a less interesting place. "Look on the bright side... maybe you can get a four hour nap."
"Right before we're about to go to sleep anyway?" MJ asked.
The class walk through the festival to the opera. Mr. Harrington says he bets they're glad they packed nice clothes.
Flash sarcastically says they're glad to be attending an opera over the biggest party in the world.
"I bet you won't be complaining when you're all safe from the sentient fire and everyone else isn't." Fury said.
They arrive at the operahouse and it's empty. Mr. Harrington says he beats the rush.
"Great." Ned said, trying and failing not to sound disinterested.
"Oh, you poor kids." Sam said, sarcastically.
Mr. Harrington says they have the best seats in the house.
"All the seats are empty." Scott pointed out.
Brad tells MJ that he'll save her a seat and walks off with the rest of the class.
Peter tells MJ that she looks really pretty.
MJ asks if that means she has value.
"Uh..." Peter struggled. He didn't know what to say to that and all of the replies he was cycling through seemed wrong. Taking back the compliment seemed wrong and he wasn't sure how well he could talk himself out of this without saying something else offensive.
Peter awkwardly says that isn't what he meant.
MJ says she was messing with him and awkwardly tells Peter that he looks pretty too.
"Oh..um... thank you." Peter said with an awkward smile.
"You both really do look nice. You make a cute pair." May said.
"May." Peter hissed, embarrassed.
"What?" May asked, innocently.
Betty and Ned gush over how cute the opera glasses are.
MJ asks Peter if he wants to go in on a pair.
Peter asks if she means they should sit next to each other.
"Obviously." Ned said. The two of them were being so obvious yet they were both so oblivious.
Over comms, Fury asks Peter if he's in position.
Peter sighed. He had his shot and now it was gone and MJ would probably end up sitting with Brad. Could nothing ever go right for him?
Peter says 'no'. Fury asks why the hell not.
MJ takes it as a no to her question asking if he wanted to sit together.
"No..." Ned sighed, this was tricky; he's glad he isn't Peter right now. "He does want to sit next to you, he just can't because he won't be there because he's fighting an Elemental monster that may or may not kill us all."
Peter fixes his comm and tells MJ that he didn't mean they to go ahead and he'll grab them a pair.
MJ says she'll save him a seat next to her and walks off.
"Now she's going to think you ditched her." May said and Peter groaned in frustration, this was not what he intended.
Peter tells Ned that he has to go and asks if he could tell MJ that he's sick.
Peter started to worry if it might be easier to tell MJ that he's Spider-Man. He knows that. as they become closer- if they become closer- he couldn't keep lying to her and coming up with flimsy excuses. She'd see through the eventually.
Ned tells Peter to be careful and steer the monster away from the opera house.
Peter says he knows that.
"That's the whole reason you're even at the opera... to make sure the monster doesn't get you." Quill said.
Before Peter leaves he looks back at his class. As the Opera starts, Brad spots Peter and flips him off.
Peter rolled his eyes.
Peter goes to march up to Brad but Fury comms him, asking if he's on his way.
Peter says he's coming and leaves, MJ follows him.
"She's suspicious. You need to come up with better excuses than being sick." Ned told Peter.
"You can't blame me for being suspicious. Peter disappears all the time and he always gives one of the same excuses, It's not too hard to figure out that something's up." MJ said. She's suspected that something was up with him ever since Washington. Peter would disappear and a few minutes later, there would be a Spider-Man sighting. She could put 2 and 2 together.
Betty asks Ned if he thinks MJ is going to the carnival and decides that they should go too and leaves.
"No... you should stay there." Peter groaned. Obviously his class has no idea what's really going on but he wished they'd cooperate and make it easier on him.
Ned felt his muscles quickly tense. He hoped that they'd eventually return to the opera house and their safety, but he knew that that was wishful thinking. He just wished that they could, maybe, avoid the fire monster.
Peter is in place atop the cathedral tower, in an all black suit.
"The black looks nice." MJ complimented.
"Thanks." Peter smiled.
Peter says he's in position and tells Mysterio that he'll let him know when he sees something.
Fury asks Peter how the suit is.
Peter says it's tight around the old 'web shooter.'
"Okay. That's too much information." Ned said.
Ned and Betty walk through the carnival, Betty comments on how beautiful everything is. Ned is very nervous. Betty asks him what's wrong.
Ned says he doesn't do well with big crowds.
Betty looks up and says she has the perfect thing and they get on the Ferris wheel.
"A giant metal wheel." Ned squeaked, panic settling in. Metal makes the fire monster stronger. The fire monster would probably seek out the Ferris wheel. Oh no. Oh no no no. This was not good.
Betty says they'll be away from the crowds and get fresh air and Ned will feel 1000 times better.
"Can we just- I-I'd like to go back to the opera please." Ned said. That fire monster was bound to show up any second and Ned really didn't want to be there when it did. He didn't want Betty or MJ to be there either. But they didn't know that they were in danger so they were likely not going to listen to him.
MJ is walking through the crowd, the water in the fountain starts boiling.
"It's here." Peter said. "And you guys are in danger." His face turned ghost white from the fear and panic rushing in his blood. MJ, Betty and Ned had to get out of there.
Magma starts breaking through the concrete and the Fire monster emerges. The crowd panics and run.
'I bet they wished they evacuated the city, now.' Fury thought to himself.
"I take it back." MJ said quickly, retracting her earlier statement of 'I would rather fight the fire monster.' She found that she would not rather fight the fire monster. Not after seeing it. "I'd rather be at the opera."
"Okay... it's happening." May said, trying to calm herself, but she couldn't. Not knowing that her nephew and his friends were directly in the danger.
Peter tells Mysterio that the monster's there. Mysterio flies in. Betty and Ned are still on the Ferris wheel, Betty pleads for help.
"Oh no." Peter said. He had to get up there and save them. Fast. The monster was there and the longer it stayed, the more powerful it was likely to become.
The Fire monster smashes things, Mysterio drops down and uses his powers to combat it. Peter webs away the top of the fire hydrant, causing water to shoot out.
Betty spots Peter and asks Ned if he thinks it's Spider-Man.
"Spider-Man? In Prague? No... couldn't be..." Peter said, voice going up slightly in pitch with the lie.
"So much for Spider-Man not being seen in Europe." Steve sighed. He wondered how Ned and Peter would talk their way out of this one.
Ned says it's a European rip-off of Spider-Man and he was reading about him the other day.
"Eh... it's kinda believable. You're getting better. Slowly but... you're getting better." May said. It's believable that there's vigilantes out there who copied from some of the other heroes but the web shooting and the sticking to walls... is kind of a unique ability, that didn't seem like it was easy to replicate.
The fire monster goes to punch Peter, who flips out of the way and lands on a carousel, the fire monster punches it, knocking Peter away. Peter tells Mysterio that the fire monster got the carousel and is getting bigger.
"Oh no." Ned panicked, wondering if Peter and Mysterio would be able to stop it before it got to be too big.
Betty asks what the European Spider-Man's name is. Ned says it's Night Monkey.
"Night Monkey?" Peter asked.
Betty starts calling for 'Night Monkey' to help them. Peter sees them and panics, he looks behind him and the monster is bigger. Peter shoots webs at it but they catch fire.
"I can't even fight it." Peter said. The best he could do was keep the metal away and make sure that it didn't go after Ned and Betty.
"What did you think would come of that?" Rhodey asked.
"I don't know." Peter said, shrugging. He wondered if he could make fire resistant webs.
Mysterio drops down next to hum and uses his 'powers' to shield them then asks if they're on to plan B.
"What the hell is plan B?" Tony wondered.
Peter says they need to hit it with something it can't absorb.
"Everything but materials that are conductors of heat." Bruce said. There seemed to be a lot of that around.
Mysterio says he'll go left while Peter goes right. They disperse. Peter runs at the monster chases him, he runs up the side of a building, flips off, lands behind the monster and uses his webs to hit it in the chest with a boulder, which 'wounds' it. Mysterio shoots it.
"Okay. Good. You hurt it." May said, now leaning almost on the edge of her chair, body tense with anticipation.
Maria and Fury drive toward the scene.
Mysterio tells Peter not to let the monster get to the Ferris wheel.
"For more reasons than one." Peter muttered. He hoped that Ned and Betty and MJ, wherever she ended up running for cover, were all going to be okay. He didn't know what he'd do if they weren't.
Peter gets tossed into something. The monster punches the ground and strips of magma make their way to the Ferris wheel and it starts falling.
"Oh god." Ned panicked. He's gonna die. This is how he dies, he's sure of it.
The monster tries to grab Ned and Betty. Mysterio stops it's hand with his 'powers.' Peter tries to shoot a web at the Ferris wheel but something prevents it from sticking.
"What?" Peter asked, confused. "That's not right." The web should have stuck, that hasn't happened since before he perfected the wed formula.
The web, attached to a piece of metal, bunces past MJ who's hiding by a nearby building.
"Why are you still there, why didn't you?" Ned asked MJ.
Peter was just glad that MJ seemed unharmed, especially for being so close to the fight.
Peter rushes to help Ned and Betty.
"Oh, thank you." Ned panted, panic slowly dissipating. He had complete faith that Peter would keep them safe.
Fury and Hill arrive at the scene. Mysterio continues shooting lasers at the monster but it only gets stronger. Maria says it's too late.
"No." Peter gasped. "It can't be too late. We can still beat this thing. If we don't we'll all die and the world will end. It can't be too late."
Mysterio tells Peter that he's glad they met.
"What is he doing?" Peter asked, panicked.
Peter asks him what he's doing.
Mysterio says he's doing what he should have done last time.
"Is he going to sacrifice himself?" Peter asked, sadly. He felt as though he'd found a friend in Beck. Was he really about to die?
Mysterio summons his 'power' and dives through the fire monster's chest. The monster implodes in a blast of green.
"Is it over?" Scott asked after a moment. "Did he do it?"
"I think so." Peter said, a little breathlessly as the adrenaline rushed out of his system.
Mysterio is lying on the ground, slightly injured but alive and mostly fine, Peter rushes down to him and helps him up.
"Wait, he's fine? After all that?" Strange asked, skeptically. That blast very well should have killed him.
"Something about all of this doesn't sit well with me." Maria added. "He said that an entire team of them went after this thing on their planet and yet Beck was able to mostly defeat this one by himself? I don't buy it. Something is up here."
On the Ferris wheel, Betty says she'd totally kiss Ned but she thinks she threw up in her mouth a little.
"How romantic." Shuri grimaced.
"Who doesn't love the taste of bile during a kiss?" Clint asked, sarcastically.
Ned flounders for a moment before saying that he might have a mint and then he searches his suit pocket.
"Smooth." Peter teased.
"Like you're any better." Ned replied.
Peter looked ready to pretest but soon conceded with a muttered "Fair point."
Maria asks Mysterio if it's over.
Mysterio says that was the last of them.
"Thank god." Peter sighed in relief, maybe he'd be able to enjoy the rest of his vacation after all. Maybe the group will finally go to Paris so he can get MJ alone and tell her... everything.
Fury says it's not the last threat they'll ever face.
"No... it never is." Maria agreed. "But it's over for now and that's what we should focus on. You'll lose yourself if you keep waiting for the next fight, boss."
Fury says they need to stay vigilant and tells Mysterio that there's a void in the world for someone like him. He says he and Maria are going to Eruopol headquarters in Berlin and invites Mysterio to join them. Mysterio stands and says he might take them up on that.
"Are you sure about this?" Natasha asked Fury.
Fury spots Peter standing off to the side, and tells him that he's got gifts but he didn't want to be there.
"You're right. He didn't. But you didn't give him the choice." May said. "His reluctance is on you, not him."
Fury says he'd love to have Peter in Berlin with them but Peter needs to decide whether or not he wants to step up.
"He is a kid, Fury. He's a minor, he shouldn't have to make this decision, at least not yet." Coulson said.
Fury says Tony chose him and made him an Avenger and says he and the world need that. He suggests Tony was wrong and asks Peter if he was. He tells Peter that the choice is his.
"That's a lot of pressure to put on a kid." Steve said.
"He is only 16, he- you shouldn't be looking to him to be this next big hero. He's in high school, he's a kid. He has other responsibilities and you can't just drag him away from that." May said. She didn't need her nephew being involved with men like Fury, not yet, not while he's still her responsibility.
Mysterio invites Peter for a drink.
"I'm not 18." Peter said.
"You're not 21 either." May reminded. "No drinking until you're 21, I don't care what country you're in."
Peter tells Mysterio that he isn't 21.
"Maybe bars in Europe have different rules about closing for minors. And it's not like you can't get a soda or something." Ned said.
Mysterio and Peter are at a bar. Mysterio tells him to celebrate because they did something good.
"It's kind of hard to celebrate when Nick Fury is making you feel like shit." Clint spoke. "I've been there. It's not fun."
Peter says Fury was right that Tony did a lot for him and says he owes it to Tony and everyone else, he says Tony gave him the chance to be more and he wanted him to be better and Fury wants him to live up to that.
"Peter..." May said. "Listen to me. You do not owe anyone anything, especially not Nick Fury." She knows Peter feels like he needs to honor that memory- to step up into the position that people keep trying to force him into, but this isn't the only way to do that.
Mysterio asks Peter what he wants. Peter says he doesn't know. Mysterio asks again. Peter says he wants to go on his trip with his friends, go to the Eiffel tower with the girl he likes and tell her how he feels and kiss her.
"I'd like that." MJ said, quietly.
"Wh- really?" Peter asked, shyly.
"What?" MJ asked. She didn't think he heard her until she remembered: Superior senses.
Mysterio says that Peter won't to that.
Peter says he can't because he has too much of a responsibility.
Peter looked down, sadly, shoulders slumped. Sometimes it was hard to be bot Spider-Man and Peter Parker. Keeping his lives separate wasn't easy which was why a part of him was relieved when Ned and- later- May found out about it because it was one less person he'd have to hide from. Sometimes he was sick of all of the lying and had even entertained the idea of revealing himself- at least to a few others, before he ultimately decided that that was a horrible idea and kept his identity a secret. It was safer for everyone else that way anyway, even if it was difficult for him.
A lady finds the glasses on the floor and hands them back to Peter. Mysterio asks what they are.
"Peter, do not tell him." Peggy said. She felt like it was a bad idea to let other people know about EDITH, even if it did seem like they were friends.
Peter says they're the EDITH glasses.
Mysterio comments about them being on the floor.
"They must've fallen..." Peter said. What was Beck implying?
Mysterio tells Peter to try them on so he can see how they look.
Peter puts them on and says he really likes them.
"Uh... I think maybe you could grow into them a little more." May said.
"It's not a bad look... it's just- the look is a little old for you right now." Hope said.
Mysterio asks if he can be completely honest and tells Peter that they look stupid.
"Ouch. Talk about brutal honesty." Peter said.
Mysterio says there may be a contact lens version. Peter holds them out to Mysterio and says he can try them on.
"Peter, I don't know if that's such a good idea." Ned said.
Mysterio denies but Peter insists so Mysterio takes them and puts them on.
"I don't like them on him. I think it's his face shape, the beard isn't helping either. It just looks weird." Quill said.
Peter remembers the note Tony left with the glasses, misinterpreting it to mean that he trusts Peter to choose the next Tony Stark and then explains it to Mysterio.
"Kid... what're you doing?" Pepper asked.
Mysterio says he isn't following and asks Peter how many lemonades he had.
Peter says Tony knew every mistake he ever made and he must've known that Peter wasn't ready for something like this.
"I think that you're not ready now. But I don't think I thought that you'd never be ready." Tony said. Maybe when this actually happens he'd be a lot more specific in that note. Peter was trustworthy, and he was responsible- as responsible as a 16 year old boy could be. But he was young. There were a lot of things he wasn't ready for and a lot of things that he shouldn't have to be ready for.
Mysterio asks why he'd give them to him.
"I think that was more on Fury than Tony." Rhodey said. "I-I don't know if there were specific instructions that Tony gave to Fury or not but I think he should have waited to give those to Peter."
Peter suggests that Tony didn't trust Peter to have EDITH but trusted him to pick who should.
"I don't think that's what the note meant." Fury said. "If it was, Stark would have been more obvious. He's not one for speaking in riddles."
"Fury's right." Tony said, he didn't know his future self, and didn't know how his future self would have thought. But he knows that he would have made everything clear, he knows his future self intended for Peter to have those glasses, not someone else. "As much as I hate to say it."
Peter says it makes so much more sense and says Tony always knew he would do what's right. He says Tony wouldn't give them to Fury because Fury would keep EDITH for himself.
"True."
Mysterio says Peter's probably right about that. Peter says the world needs the next Iron Man and is isn't going to be a 16 years old from Queens.
"But maybe the world doesn't need another Iron Man." May suggested. "Maybe what the world needs is a Spider-Man. It doesn't need Tony Stark, it needs you. You're enough."
Peter says it needs to be an adult with some experience and who's good like Tony and like Mysterio.
"You're gonna gibe him the glasses aren't you?" Ned asked, nervously. He still wasn't sure that this was a good idea. In face, it seemed like the worst idea. Tony trusted Peter with those glasses, not someone else. He trusted Peter to keep them.
Mysterio takes the glasses off and says no.
"He doesn't sound like he means that." Natasha said, suspicion increasing. She didn't trust Beck from the beginning but she never said anything because she didn't really have a reason not to trust him. Unless ignorance counts, but she didn't like to use that as the only excuse. As she saw more of him, the more shady he seemed. He would say things and to the untrained ear, it sounded like he meant them, but there was something else to him. Something she wasn't sure she liked.
Peter puts the glasses on and activates EDITH and says he'd like to transfer her controls to Quentin Beck.
"Peter..." May sighed.
Mysterio asks Peter what he's doing. Peter says he's doing the right thing.
Peter watched the scene with his eyebrows furrowed. Was this the right thing to do? He knew he wasn't responsible enough for EDITH, but was giving the glasses away really the best decision? He wasn't really sure that it was. He doesn't know Beck, he doesn't know if he can trust him or not. He has no reason not to but he has no reason to either. What if this was a mistake?
EDITH says the transfer will require conformation.
Mysterio reminds Peter that Tony gave him the glasses.
Peter says Tony gave him a choice.
"He gave you both. That's how I see it." Strange "He gave you the glasses and the decision to be the next Iron Man.
"No one will fault you if you say no to that, and you're not disappointing anyone if you say no to that." May added.
Peter rubbed his temples with the tips of his fingers. This was all so confusing, it was making his head swim. He didn't know what Tony meant in his note. He didn't know if he could trust Beck. And he didn't know if he was making the right decision or not.
Peter says it's his choice to make and he's gonna make it and says Mysterio is a soldier, a leader and he stopped the Elementals, saved his life and saved the world and says Tony would want him to have them.
"He wouldn't." Pepper said. "On some level, I know you know that."
Peter confirms the transfer, gives the glasses to Mysterio and welcomes him to the Avengers.
Peter tensed, wondering what was going to happen now. Did he just make the biggest mistake of his life or was this the right choice. That remains to be seen.
Mysterio puts the glasses on. Peter says they look good on him.
"Do they, though?" Ned asked.
They shake hands, Mysterio thanks him and Peter grabs his things, saying that Tony would've liked him.
Tony seemed skeptical of that. He doesn't have much to go off of, sure, but he's not sure he would've liked Beck if he knew him.
Mysterio asks him where he's headed.
Peter says he's going to find MJ.
Mysterio wishes him luck and says Peter probably has a 50/50 chance because he's pretty awkward.
"They can be awkward together." Ned said. He would never say it to her face, out of fear she'd use one of her clever insults on him, but MJ could be pretty awkward at times too. She wasn't really a people person.
Peter leaves the bar. Mysterio makes sure he's clear of the structure before dropping the illusion.
"What is this?" Peter asked, suspicion and worry evident in his voice.
"That almost looks like..." Tony started.
"It's BARF!" Shuri shouted as soon as she could remember what the acronym Tony used for it was.
The bar is filled with ex-employees of Tony that he's wronged in some way or another. Mysterio tells them that that wasn't so hard.
"What did I do?" Peter asked himself in a panic, cursing himself for being so naïve, so gullible. Beck was manipulating him that entire conversation and he was too stupid to see it. And now he's just given away the most important thing that Tony gave him- and possibly the most dangerous- to a man that they could not trust. How the hell was he supposed to fix this?
The patrons cheer. Mysterio asks for someone to get the stupid costume off of him and says they have EDITH and tells someone to get it connected to their system.
"What is he going to use those for?" Okoye wondered. She suspected that whatever plans he had would not be good.
The patrons ask Mysterio for a toast. Mysterio says this was a big win but they have a lot of work to do.
They continue asking for a toast, Mysterio jumps onto the counter and makes a toast to Tony-their former employer, who brought them all together.
"They're all ex-employees." Tony gasped, knowing that he didn't exactly have the best track record for being a good boss. In fact, most people who worked for him would call him an uncaring one. It seemed that Peter kept having to clean up his mistakes. First with Toomes and the DODC and now with Beck- who he hasn't even met yet and somehow he managed to piss him off too.
"They all worked for you?" Strange asked. 'God help us all.'
Mysterio says Tony was literally wrapped in wealth and technology that he was unfit to wield. He mentions the holographic system that he designed and calls it a revolutionary breakthrough with limitless applications that Tony turned into a self-therapy machine.
"Wait... Mysterio was the one who invented BARF?" Peter asked.
A memory of Tony explaining BARF to the MIT students plays. Quentin stands back stage and listens to the audience laugh at the name.
"Wait we all watched the same speech and I don't remember anyone ever laughing at the name." Quill remembered.
"He wants to remember being more slighted than he was so it becomes more justifiable, not that he wasn't already slighted pretty heavily." Natasha said. Tony could be insensitive he could be an asshole, it wasn't really a shock to her that his former employees band together in hatred of him. "Quentin sees this as Tony taking his life's work and turning it into some joke."
Mysterio says Tony renamed his life's work 'BARF' and says he told Tony that it was a mistake and that his technology could change the world.
"It could also make the world worse." Shuri said. She was no huge fan of Tony Stark, but she knew that technology like this in the wrong hands could be disastrous, and Mysterio's hands definitely seemed like the wrong ones. In fact, she remembered warning them of this very thing when they first learned that BARF existed.
Mysterio says Tony fired him after that.
"Really?" Pepper asked Tony, incredulously.
Mysterio says Tony said he was unstable.
"You seem a little unstable to me." Peter muttered.
The patrons make a toast to Tony. Mysterio says the next toast is to William who remembers Obidiah yelling at him for not being able to shrink the arc reactor.
"I remember William and William was never insulted by Tony, he was insulted by Obadiah because of Tony." Rhodey said. "And he was working with Obadiah Stane- who's significantly worse than Tony, I think he deserved to be fired after that."
"What if he was only working with Stane under duress?" Peter asked.
Mysterio says the integration of his illusion tech with Williams weaponized drones was brilliant and says the powerful illusions and real damage worked like a charm.
"So he was behind all of it the whole time? Mexico, Morocco, Venice, Prague, that was all him?" Peter asked. "He took creatures from myths and made them real just so he could be seen fighting them and hailed as a hero? He was in control of everything the entire time, that was how he knew so much about the monsters and what they did, where they would appear. He made it all up."
"I bet he only used myths to make his charade that much more believable." Clint said. How the hell could he have not seen that sooner. He's usually more vigilant than that.
"This guy is insane. Who does something like that?" May asked. "I can't explain how messed up that is. It's sick." She couldn't believe that Beck had manipulated her kid into giving him one of the most important gifts he'd ever receive. She didn't like Tony all that much, she never would, but she knew what his death must've been like for Peter and she knew that the gift had meant a lot to him. Then Beck came and ripped that away.
The next toast is to Guterman. Mysterio says the story he created about a soldier named Quentin from another Earth fighting space monsters in Europe was ridiculous and exactly the kind of thing people would believe because everyone bought it.
"So the Multiverse isn't real." Peter said, dejectedly. He didn't really know why that disappointed him.
"Yeah. Why shouldn't we believe the story? Half of us just died and came back to life 5 years later because of a purple alien with 6 magic space rocks." Scott said.
"He is right about that it. That is exactly the kind of thing everyone would believe. After everything that's happened, the world only seems to get crazier so why shouldn't the Multiverse and Elemental space monsters be real?" Sam asked. "We live in a world where the far-fetched doesn't seem so far-fetched anymore."
The next toast is to Victoria. Mysterio says staging electromagnetic pulses to every site so Fury's own satellites confirmed their lies was inspired.
"He really did cover all of his bases." Tony sighed.
"I can't believe I fell for this." Fury said. It didn't make any sense to him. He was not one to trust easily. He'd only known Beck for a few weeks it seemed and yet he trusted the man almost immediately. It made no sense, unless he was really that good of a liar. Come to think of it, a lot of his own behaviors seemed very uncharacteristic, he was acting like himself but there was just something that was slightly off, and he couldn't figure out what it was. He wondered if it had something to do with the blip.
The next toast is to Janice. Mysterio says Janice discovered EDITH wouldn't be handed over to them or the defense department but to a child.
"Why would it be handed over to a group of vengeful ex employees or the Defense Department?" Pepper asked. Tony trusted very few people and he wouldn't just hand his tech over to any agency of any kind.
Mysterio says Tony Stark is gone so there is a window of opportunity and someone will step up. He says they could be the smartest one in the room or the most qualified and no one will care.
"I-I really don't think that that's all true. You don't have to be a superhero to get people to care. You don't have to be Captain America or someone to get people to pay attention. They're just public figures, that's why people care so much. They're like celebrities." Ned spoke. "At least that's how I see it... I don't really know if that's all true. I mean this is the future..."
He says no one will listen unless they're flying around with a cape or shooting lasers out of their hands.
"He's jealous." Carol realized. "He's bitter and he's jealous. He allowed that bitterness and jealousy to fester and he created a monster. Literally and Figuratively."
Mysterio says he has a cape and lasers. He says Mysterio will be the greatest hero on Earth with their tech and EDITH.
"You're not really being a hero if you're creating your own threat." Steve said.
"He's a glorified illusionist at best." Loki added. He knew that it was weird, coming from- talking about heroism but he had something to add so he added it.
Mysterio says everyone will listen not to a boozy man-child or a hormonal teenager, but they'll listen to him and his wealthy crew.
"Boozy man child?" Tony asked at the same time Peter asked "Hormonal teenager?"
"If the shoe fits." Rhodey joked with his friend who just rolled his eyes.
They toast to themselves, Mysterio and Peter then says they should get to work.