Ferrying the tempestuous Whirlwind to the newest prison for super-criminals, the Avengers think all is well… until mysterious forces lay siege to the prison! Now they must find a way to repulse these endless invaders, but can they? Is every soul in sight doomed? Keep reading, true believers, and watch the Avengers weather this-
Chapter 41: Assault on 42
Dave Cannon was not having a good day. Again.
Whirlwind charged down a busy New York street, his tempestuous energies shunting cars to the left and right while even flinging some over buildings and further down the road. He was in a breathless panic, desperate to escape those pursuing him as he charged heedlessly forward. "Leave me alone why don't you! What have I ever done to deserve this?!" He cried, hurling cars out of the way.
"I could tell you myself, but SHIELD has a much more accurate rap sheet!" Cybernaut retorted as he tracked him from above.
"Don't waste your air, Whirlwind! I mean, sure, you're generating plenty of it already, but nothing you say is gonna deter us!" Wasp added, buzzing feverishly behind him in hot pursuit. The pint-sized heroine sent a flurry of biostings chasing after whirlwind, landing a series of hits across his armored body. "Besides! You should know by now that I'm just gonna knock you out again and then drag you back to a cell again!" She added smugly.
"Oh no, not again! Never again!" Whirlwind cried out, coming to a screeching halt as he whipped around to confront Wasp. His arms snapped out, buzzsaw's popping open on his arms as he made to swing for her. Suddenly, they froze in place, no matter how hard he tried to move them. "W-What the…?"
"Easy there, Buzz! Haven't you heard it's not nice to cut a lady?" Cybernaut retorted from on high, a single hand out as his magnets held Whirlwind's limbs at bay.
"Don't trouble yourself, Cybernaut. Not my first rodeo with this wind-whipped clown." Wasp stated, hovering beside him.
"You sure?" The technopath wondered, shooting her a glance.
"Sure I'm sure! It's only Dave." Wasp emphatically promised with a dismissive wave of her hand. Connor shrugged.
"Alright, I'll watch. But I'm intervening at the first sign of trouble." He said, relenting as he dropped down to street level and leaned against a nearby lamppost to watch. Freed from his invisible bonds, Whirlwind launched himself at Wasp with a flurry of tempestuous power. The winsome heroine quickly flew high, arcing over him as she rained down biostings from above and peppered his helmeted head.
"You getting old, Dave? You're slower than normal!" She teased. Whirlwind growled.
"Hold! Still!" He swung his arms viciously, generating powerful gusting vortex to try and catch her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't catch Janet or land a hit on her. Connor watched with insightful eyes, noting Wasp's airspeed and her flight patterns as well as Whirlwind's powerful responses. Janet had definitely done this dance before. She knew all of Whirlwind's capabilities and how to deal with them.
"Really, Dave? Punches and wind? Is that all you've got?" Wasp teased, shooting him right in the eye.
"YEOW!" Whirlwind recoiled, clutching his wounded eye. "Why don't you just shut up, Avenger?!" Spooling up his powers, Whirlwind hurriedly formed a tornado with the hope that the wind gusts would be enough to drive the heroine away from him. Wasp, having dealt with this before, acted quickly.
"You better get a new routine, windbag! I know all your tricks!" Triggering the Pym particles in her veins, Wasp immediately began to grow in size until she was of normal height. But she didn't stop there and kept growing, quickly expanding to her giant size and towering over Whirlwind. The beleaguered villain looked up in shock as the tread of her boot loomed over him.
"Huh?! What the-?!" He was brutally cut off as Janet stomped him into the street, the windstorm adapting as his powers faded. Lifting her leg, Whirlwind was out cold and smack in the middle of a sizeable crater in the road.
"Man, that was just sad, Dave. I used to love our little chases, now you're just disappointing." Janet remarked as she shrank back down to normal size. "Maybe it's a good thing you're going back to prison again." She added with a disapproving sigh and a slow shake of her head. All for dramatic effect, of course, since Whirlwind was no longer conscious.
"You might've found it disappointing, but I'll take this over Tony, Cap and Thor losing their powers. Now that was nuts!" Cybernaut interjected as he strode over.
"Don't tell me you're whimping out on big-deal stuff!" Wasp exclaimed mockingly so.
"Pffft, as if." He retorted with a scoff. "I just fought some Asgardian doomsday-machine while simultaneously keeping three of our team alive and safe from the Wrecking Crew. You tell me that isn't a hard days work." He described. "Right now, I'm more than happy to do something a little calmer… like haul Whirlwind off to Forty-Two."
The next day…
With processing paperwork swiftly cleared by SHIELD, Cybernaut and Wasp were charged with escorting Whirlwind to his incarceration, along with Captain America, Thor and Miss Marvel who were going along for a routine inspection.
With Prison 42 now being the singular place to house super-criminals of every capacity, it was critical that all systems and functions were heavily monitored. SHIELD had taken an active role in its use, overseeing 42 in every way. But as the Avengers and Fantastic Four were the ones to devise, construct and found the prison, they were equally entitled to commanding its inner-workings.
"Well, Whirlwind, this is your big day. It's off to prison again." Janet teased, striding into the teleporter room alongside her fellow Avengers and a bound Whirlwind. "You must be so psyched!" The supervillain grunted angrily in response. "And not just any prison… You've got your own private cell waiting for you in Forty-Two." Janet added, making it seem like he'd won a dream vacation.
"Jan, you sure it's necessary to tease the prisoner like that?" A hesitant Carol wondered in a hushed voice.
"Yeah. Pretty much. Especially when it's Dave. We go way back." Janet responded nonchalantly. She quieted down as their cue to pass through the x-ray scanner came up; a system meant to check on incoming supervillains to make sure they had smuggled nothing in with them. SHIELD agent Jasper Sitwell surveyed the skeletal appearances passing on the monitor before him, a separate monitor using biometric readings to confirm the identities of the Avengers and Whirlwind.
"Good thing that wasn't like airport security. With all the metal in my hands I never would've cleared inspection." Cybernaut quipped. Leading the group, Captain America paused and saluted the guarding agent on duty.
"We won't be long." He promised as the agent stepped aside. Before him, up a stairway, a pair of massive steel doors marked with the numbers '42' slid open to revealing the swirling energies of the portal within. The Star-Spangled Avenger stepped boldly through as Thor pushed Whirlwind on ahead, with Wasp, Miss Marvel and Cybernaut bringing up the rear.
The blinding light of the churning energies gave way to more steel and technology, the prison's 'foyer'. Waiting for them at the foot of the stairs, a silver-haired man in a blue SHIELD-issue suit stood patiently waiting for them. "Welcome to Forty-Two, Avengers." He greeted.
"Warden," Cap replied, shaking his outstretched hand. The group was ushered into the super-max level at the end of a corridor. A massive sanctum was revealed, filled with countless ray-shielded prison cells as dozens of SHIELD agents in Mandroid armor stood guard across the various cell blocks. Even higher up revealed a glass dome surrounding a pipeline of golden energy that powered the station, the twinkling lights of a galaxy on the other side; the Negative Zone
The Avengers strode past rows of cells where villains of every calibre had been incarcerated, most of which had been placed there by Earth's Mightiest Heroes. AIM drones, Hydra troopers, the Abomination, even Captain Mar-Vell, who share the briefest of glances with Miss Marvel as she walked past. The two could sense each other when in close proximity, a consequence of their mirroring energies. Despite the emotional strings being plucked, the Major remained stoic and undeterred and kept walking as Mar-Vell watched her go.
"Let me give you the heads-up in case you're thinking about escaping again;" Jan continued, nudging the sulking Whirlwind, "this prison sits in a billion light years of empty, lifeless nothingness called the Negative Zone. So, even if you got out, you'd have nowhere to go." She explained.
Suddenly, the lights flickered most dramatically. The transfer team abruptly paused, confused and slightly frightened by the power bump. Connor's eyes narrowed as he focused his mutant power.
"Odd…" He trailed off.
"Somebody forget to pay the electric bill?" Captain America wondered aloud, half-joking.
"No… I don't think it's that…" Cybernaut muttered. With the power restored, the team continued on, passing the cell belonging to Samuel Sterns (aka the Leader) seemingly in a fit of a hysteria. Grunting and growling as he grasped his oversized cranium, he appeared to be at his wits end.
"Make it stop! Please!" He hoarsely begged anyone willing to hear. The Avengers proffered a few weary looks before stopping in front of Whirlwind's designated cell.
"Open Three-Eight-Nine." Cap ordered. The ray-shield entry was lowered and Whirlwind was shoved inside, his cuffs falling off as the cell's ray-shield was raised, trapping him within.
"Job well done, my friends. A proverbial 'cake walk' as you mortals call it." Thor praised them.
"You absolute fools! Listen to me!" Leader bellowed from his cell, loud enough to draw the attention of the heroes. He had a wild look in his vivid green eyes, stronger than even the emerald shade of his skin. The normally composed, arrogant scientist was behaving like a wild man, treating his cell more like a padded room in an asylum. "They're out there! Waiting!" He raved, clutching his head as beings throbbed and pulsed. "And they're coming! They're coming for us all!"
To punctuate his shrieking, the power fluctuated one more time, the lights in the prison blinking on and off in a rapid, disorderly way. Cybernaut looked around. "Eerily coincidental." He muttered, reaching out with his senses to probe the flickering systems.
"Ugh, not again." Wasp complained with a huff.
"What's going on?" Cap wondered aloud with a frown, trying to put two and two together. Clearly something was wrong here, what with the flickering power and raving inmates. But what exactly was wrong?
"That, Captain America, is exactly what I'm here to find out." Clay Quartermain announced, approaching the heroes with a pair of Mandroids and the She-Hulk in tow. Miss Marvel tilted her head in greeting, recognizing a fellow agent. The rest of the Avengers were more focused on She-Hulk, the surly-faced titanic green-skinned woman they had only seen briefly during the battle on the capitol grounds with the Skrull.
"Agent Quartermain." Carol greeted. Clay nodded and learned forward.
"Let's, uh, talk in the control room. Don't wanna scare the prisoners." He stated in a hushed whisper. Wasp gulped.
"When you put it that way, you're starting to scare me." She whimpered.
A short walk later and everyone was assembled in 42's central command hub. Countless monitors provided readouts on every system and subsystem within the prison's structure. Clay took a seat before the main monitoring terminal as the heroes watched from behind. "The prisoners, especially the Leader, have been ranting about hearing noises. Something outside trying to get in." He explained. "The prison doesn't have any external scanners. We never needed them."
"The Negative Zone is supposed to be lifeless, according to what Ant-Man, Iron Man and Mister Fantastic surveyed," Cybernaut interjected, "this dimension is literally… well, nothing."
"That's what we thought too. Countless rotations gone by and not a peep..." Carol was the first to catch on to the unspoken word hanging in the air.
"Until?" She pried.
"We used the scanning equipment in the Mandroid armor and saw something." Clay continued, keying up a map of an exterior grid around the prison.
"What exactly?" Captain America asked.
"We don't know, a few blips. Then, they were gone." The agent answered.
"And the power fluctuations?" Wasp queried.
"It's been happening recently. But we have triple backups in place." Clay responded, standing up and turning to look directly at Connor. "Since you're here, Cybernaut, maybe you might help us get to the root of the problem."
"Avengers IT to the rescue." The technopath mused with a smirk. "I'm sure I could poke around and see what's what, provided I'm allowed to access the more sensitive systems." Clay gestured to the monitor bank with a sweep of his arm.
"You do your thing and don't worry about anything. The power isn't going to go off." He promised.
All of a sudden, the power went out.
"You were saying?" Wasp dryly remarked. The prison warden quickly took over and keyed in his override code.
"Emergency power online. Cell doors holding. Prisoners contained." He announced. Connor stepped forward and planted a hand against the terminal, his mind telepathically interfacing with the technology, turning programs and data into thoughts he could process. The problem was quickly deduced before the warden could even bring up the prison's subsystems.
"There's a power disruption at junction ninety-five." He told the group.
"Let's go take a look." Clay suggested and Connor moved to follow him.
"Major Danvers and I will come with you. Just in case." Cap offered as he and Miss Marvel trailed after them.
She-Hulk watched them go, not even asking Quartermain what she should do in the meanwhile. Her headspace was not in the right zone for this mission, the jade giantess feeling sullen and grumpy. And it all boiled down to one thing: her boyfriend. She had hoped that her newfound status would be cause for rejoicing, Jace oh-so-pleased to have her back safe and sound and more than welcoming of her newfound desire to use her new life to be a more active member of SHIELD. Instead, the exact opposite happened.
'I still can't believe Jace requested a leave of absence after that to-do with the Sons of the Serpent! Not even a heads-up or a note or anything! I had to find out days after from Director Hill! I haven't even seen or heard from him since.' Her total recall of the events served to maintain her sour mood, distancing herself from the chance to mingle with the Avengers. In fact, She-Hulk was so engrossed in her own thoughts, she failed to notice one of the remaining hero's slide closer to her.
"So… what's it like being a female Hulk?" Wasp asked her, looking up at the gamma amazon in wide-eyed wonderment. She-Hulk caught her gaze and registered her question. Despite her desire to be left alone, she knew she needed to be polite… somewhat.
"It's… green." She answered at length. Wasp continued to circle her, drinking in every inch of her unitard-clad form.
"Are you as strong as Hulk? Or are you even stronger? You don't have the same rage-thing he does, do you?" The heroine inquired. Her barrage of questions was coming in heavily and She-Hulk loosed a grumpy exhale.
"I don't know." She answered curtly. Undeterred Janet continued to probe, checking out every angle possible. She poked at She-Hulk's thick bicep.
"Man! Are these real?" She wondered, sounding awestruck. "I've never seen any this big! You could really give Carol a run for her money." She-Hulk shot her a sideways glance. "How can you be so huge but have all these perfect curves?" Janet asked, noting her shapely legs.
"Look, I-… oh!" She-Hulk's mood abruptly shifted, the cloud breaking as the compliment registered. "You think so…?" She wondered, now curious.
"Sure I think so!" Wasp replied, beaming. "Girl, you could be the world's most exotic model if you wanted!" That earned a chuckle.
"'She-Hulk; SHIELD model.' I dunno if that would ever fly."
"Don't knock it until you try it." Wasp responded. "I mean you really knock how to rock that unitard! Hey, I guess that means purple really does go with green and Hulk isn't just a one-off." Now She-Hulk was smiling and continued to as Wasp's infectious personality spread with every question proffered.
Elsewhere…
Descending into the maintenance corridors, Cybernaut continued to track the damaged junction while Quartermain, Captain America and Miss Marvel flanked him in case of trouble. Although the technopath could hold his own in a fight, his abilities paled in comparison to the other Avengers and he knew it. From a tactical standpoint it only made sense to have them along.
His powers led him right to the fault in question, where streams of data gave way to broken and shattered computer gibberish. It was a broken language in his mind, and it was a perfect beacon to the source of their problems. The flashlights of Captain America and Quartermain briefly flickered across the problem as they swept around the corridor, offering just enough illumination to clue him into what he already knew. "Well, good news and bad news. Good news is I found the problem. Bad news is I can't fix it unless you've got spare parts lying around." The lights finally landed on the problem, revealing a power conduit that had been torn wide open as the shredded wires within sparked chaotically.
"Not that I enjoy stating the obvious, but this ain't good." Clay stated grimly.
"It looks… chewed through." Miss Marvel noted as she held up a glowing fist to further illuminate the scene. "Could one of the prisoners have done this? Or could something else have followed us through the gateway?" She asked. Quartermain shook his head.
"I don't think so. The prisoners are all accounted for in their cells, and the power dampeners prevent any of them from using their abilities… and I don't know anything on Earth that can eat through metal like that."
"Besides, whatever caused this was digging its way in not out." Captain America observed, pointing to the way the metal was curved outwards.
"Sounds like you need an exterminator instead of IT." Cybernaut remarked.
"If something came in this way, we would see it." Clay surmised. "The only way out-"
"Is the way we came in." Miss Marvel concluded. All eyes slowly turned back towards their entry hatch…
Panicked screams drew Thor, Wasp and She-Hulk into a different section of 42's maintenance wing, the trio charging down darkened corridors until they located a lone SHIELD agent perched atop a crate and waving his flashlight and sidearm in all directions.
"What is it?" Thor questioned as Wasp grew to full size.
"I-I don't know… S-Something's in here!" The agent sputtered in reply, still gripped by fear. He shined his light from wall to wall, passing over pipes, girders, flat steel, curved steel… and something distinctly organic.
It appeared to take the shape of a scorpion from Earth; although it was lacking two of the usual six legs. But the barbed tail-stinger, twin snapping claws, they all fit the description… the massive teeth in its sizeable maw, however, did not.
With a beastial snarl it lunged straight for Wasp. The startled heroine loosed a yelp of fright and shrank down, missing its sweeping claws by taking flight at the last possible second. She-Hulk intervened, rounding a fearless right hook that knocked the insectoid flat on its back. The agent wasted no time opening fire, scattered rounds striking off an armored carapace and ricocheting off the floor as the creature righted itself and skittered off into the darkness with a screech.
"What was that?!" Wasp exclaimed as she grew back to her normal height. Before anyone could respond, the SHIELD agent's radio crackled as a broken, desperate voice called out from the other side.
"N-Need… Need help…! Control… room…!"
It was the warden. Something had gotten to him while the heroes had been dispersed!
The Avengers quickly regrouped and stormed the control room together, expecting a fight. What they found instead was carnage. Screens had been shattered, panels torn apart to reveal sparking severed wires, bits and pieces of debris lay strewn across the floor. Bodies of agents and Mandroids lay unconscious here there and everywhere. "Are they…?" Janet trailed off as the men stooped to investigate.
"Alive. Just unconscious." Cybernaut announced. Captain America approached a bald man groaning as he came to and helped him to his feet.
"What happened soldier?" He asked.
"A-A bug." The agent rasped. "Some… horrible alien bug…"
"We are familiar with it." Thor rumbled.
"That's an understatement." Wasp remarked.
"Where's the warden?" Miss Marvel queried.
"It took him. Dragged him away." The agent explained, limply pointing towards one of the exit doors with a vacant, haunted look in his eyes. Steve's gaze narrowed.
"Cybernaut. Can you and Quartermain get this gear up and running again?" He tasked. The technopath and senior agent moved back over to the broken command console. Before Clay could even take a seat, Connor was already tapping into the mainframe mentally.
"This thing's pretty messed up, Cap. We're looking at about fifty-percent functionality." He reported. "Damage is somewhat superficial, but the core conduits have been fried."
"What can you get working?" The supersoldier inquired.
"Surveillance. We'll need it." Connor responded and, at once, the screens flickered to life as his mental commands prompted various programming readouts to appear one by one. Meanwhile, his mind performed an assessment of the console's other central features. It was grim. "The controls to the gateway are shot. We have no communication with the Baxter Building, and we can't open the gate from this side."
"How do we get back?" Wasp wondered hesitantly.
"We'll have to wait for the gateway to open from the other side." Clay stated.
"And when will that happen?" Miss Marvel asked.
"When the next shift of guards reports for duty." Clay answered.
"So… waiting it out with an alien killer-bug running amok. Just dandy." She-Hulk muttered.
"Clearly there is more to our foe than meets the eye, friend She-Hulk." Thor determined. "In spite of their size, these creatures can exert a brute force that far belies their stature."
"Then we better stay on our toes, people." Cap determined, slinging his shield across one arm. "We have to find the warden. Surely the bug couldn't have gotten far having to drag an average man." Cybernaut and Clay turned back to the surveillance cams, combing over the visibly-accessible areas of the prison for signs of the insect intruder. But it was Wasp who beat them both to the punch.
"There! The mess hall!"
Quickly and carefully, the Avengers and SHIELD teams met up just outside the mess hall, doing their best to not disturb the creature as it scampered across the walls. It paused periodically, using one of its claws to tap against the steel like a mallet, being very systematic… as if searching for something.
"What's it doing?" Carol wondered aloud as they all studied the curious behavior.
"Searching for a way out, perhaps." Cap theorized.
"I'll smash it before that happens." She-Hulk vowed, cracking her knuckles.
"Well, so much for the Negative Zone being devoid of all life." Wasp muttered, now that they could see their foe in the flesh without flashlights. "Why does it want the warden?"
"You always try to capture enemy officers for intel." Captain America explained, speaking from experience. Wasp shot him a quizzical glance.
"…it's just a bug."
"Aye, a very intelligent bug it would seem." Thor replied.
"A Negative Zone bug." Cybernaut chimed in. "Seems to rank a little higher on the IQ scale than an Earth bug would." The teams quickly began prepping their tools and weaponry, not willing to underestimate the tiny attacker.
"Thor, draw it away. We'll grab the warden." Captain America ordered, planning out the order of battle in his head. But a Mandroid trooper quickly interjected.
"Sir, there are more outside," he reported, "my sensors show-" Cut off by a thunderous cacophony from one of the walls, steel exploded inwards as dozens more of the insectoid came pouring in with shrieks and snarls to invade this section of the prison. Perhaps they had been summoned by their fellow holding the warden captive?
Quartermain and his fellow agents and Mandroids opened fire with their ranged weaponry. She-Hulk wasted no time clapping her hands together to generate a thunderclap that sent the insectoids flying back out the hole they'd entered through. The other Avengers cut them down where they stood, Wasp with her biostings, Miss Marvel with photon blasts, Cybernaut with plasma beams, Captain America with his shield and Thor with dazzling blows from Mjolnir. Despite the success of their attacks, it was hampered by the growing numbers of the insectoids pouring into the room. They closed the gap with the SHIELD agents and attacked them hard, taking them down one by one while tearing chunks out of the Mandroid troopers.
A winged version of the insectoids swooped in from the void and grabbed the warden within deceptively strong legs and started carting him off, disappearing back through the same hole. "The warden!" Carol cried out in warning as she broke off to pursue. Cap caught his shield, the edges rimmed with green blood.
"Thor, go with her!" He shouted over the din. The Asgardian gave chase, chasing Miss Marvel into the void.
"Do not let it get a-" he stopped suddenly, something grabbing at his senses and drawing him in. He turned in mid-flight, glancing backwards at the prison complex… and a rising shadow looming against the cosmic expanse. "Odin's beard…!" He gasped. Carol heard him and turned to look. Her eyes shot wide as the terror sank in.
"Oh boy… Cap? You're not gonna like this."
A seething mass of insectoids, their numbers beyond count, was bearing down on them. They were all identical in shape and size, a veritable invasion force looming out of the infinite void and approaching the prison.
"What's the situation?" Cap radioed from within the structure.
"There are hundreds of them." Miss Marvel responded. That didn't sit well with the others.
"You mean there's more?!" Wasp exclaimed. "I thought this was more!"
"Seems like they're pulling a clown-car phenomenon!" Cybernaut remarked as he vaped a swath of creatures with twin plasma blasts. The tide of battle was turning and not in their favor.
"Everyone out! Into the hall!" Clay ordered. The SHIELD agents backed out first as the heroes held the line, Wasp and Cybernaut using their ranged abilities to great effect as they kept the swarm away from the team. She-Hulk reached down to grab the floor, tearing it up and snapping it like a whip to send the insectoids flying in every direction. "Sealing the mess hall doors!" Clay announced, smashing the emergency seal controls. At once, two fireproof steel panels closed shut like the halves of a vice, crushing several insectoids in the process. Their claws littered the ground as heavy thumps sounded from the other side, dents appearing in the door.
"Stubborn, aren't they?!" An out-of-breath Wasp noted.
"Agent Quartermain, I have Thor and Miss Marvel on my scanners…" one of the Mandroid troopers announced, "and something coming right at them… a whole lot of somethings!" A wave of concerned rolled over the Avengers.
"Carol! Thor! Get out of there!" Captain America barked over their comms.
"We'll try to slow them down a little," Carol responded over the sound of her own booming photon blasts, "so you can-… Thor! Look out!" The thunder god uttered a war cry that pierced the comms. "There's just too many. There's just-…" Carol's words cut to static, filling the air with a chilling sense of dread. Loosing a growl, Captain America hardened himself and tightened his grip on his shield.
"I'm going out there. Open the door." He commanded.
"Are you nuts?!" She-Hulk exclaimed in disbelief.
"They just took out our muscle! No offence, but what're you supposed to do?" Cybernaut added.
"It's too dangerous!" Quartermain protested. Suddenly, the pounding on the door increased, sizeable dents appearing in the metal as it shuddered with every heavy blow. Freezing in place, Captain America realized they were running out of options.
"Looks like they're going to open it for you." He stated, moving to the forefront. "Everyone get ready!" The survivors tensed in preparation for another fight. The door shuddered, trembling as punch after punch bent the twin panels inwards. Suddenly, with a rush of debris and a cloud of smoke and dust, the door caved in and slammed to the floor.
But instead of bugs emerging from the smoke, a victorious Miss Marvel and Thor strode through instead.
"Thor… Carol… You big blonde bug zappers!" An overjoyed Wasp whooped in delight, rushing forward to embrace her friend.
"Let's not celebrate too soon." Captain America cautioned. "I have a feeling this isn't over yet."
Later…
Returning to the command centre, they began implementing a new course of action. On Cybernaut's recommendation, technology from the Mandroid armor was pulled out and inserted into the prison's larger programming. Able to do the work of an entire tech team, Connor was chosen to perform the system implementation.
The others watched him work, those familiar with his work looking on with pride while those who were unfamiliar stared with rapt awe. "And I thought SHIELD techies were good." She-Hulk remarked.
"You can do a lot when code is practically a second language." Miss Marvel concurred.
"Yeah, he's the best. I can't remember how many times he's fixed my phone for me." Wasp added with a grin. With his back to them, Cybernaut allowed himself to smile as he finished up fusing together programs and streams of code.
"Okay… all systems upgraded with the Mandroid sensors to scan the exterior." He announced after a moment, flickering all the screens to fresh monitor cycles.
"Good work. Can you put it on screen?" Quartermain asked and Connor did as asked, converting the entire display to a single area scan displaying the territory around the prison.
Revealed was a mass of red dots, so numerous they clumped together into a gigantic red ring that circled around the perimeter of the prison.
"There's so many…" Wasp gasped in horrified awe. "Why aren't they attacking?"
"It's like they're waiting for something." Miss Marvel noted.
"If they overrun us, they'll be here when the next shift comes through the gateway in less than an hour." Clay calculated, godsmacked by just how many of the there were.
"The monsters would flood into Midgard unopposed." Thor grimly determined.
"Wave after wave… Earth would face annihilation." Cybernaut realized.
"We'll destroy the gateway before we let that happen." Captain America stated stoically.
"Won't that sort of… you know, trap us here? Like forever?" Wasp asked with a nervous swallow.
"As a last resort." Cap clarified. "Until then, we hold the line."
"The six of us, a She-Hulk and a handful of SHIELD agents can't hold these things off." Miss Marvel said aloud. "We'll never last alone." Catching the tone of her words, She-hulk looked curiously in her direction.
"You've got a plan, don't you?" She stated, seeking affirmation.
"What are you thinking, Carol?" Captain America inquired.
A few moments later…
"Alright, everybody! Listen up!" Miss Marvel boomed as the Avengers stood before all of the incarcerated supervillains. "Most of you here aren't stupid,"
"That'll win 'em over." Wasp remarked under her breath and Cybernaut failed to supress a snicker.
"You all know something's wrong."
"We knew before you did!" Leader cried from his cell.
"Yes. Thank you." Carol grumbled with an exhale. "And that's why we're looking to you these walls, there's an army of bugs… very hungry, nasty bugs. We need your help. We can't find them alone." She explained.
"You will have my aid in the fight, Carol." Mar-Vell promised from the door of his cell.
"Thank you, Mar-Vell."
"Sure, sure, space-boy wants to help the Avengers, but I seem to remember the Avengers putting us in this prison!" Emil Blonsky, the Abomination, snarled from his cell.
"It's true. We've fought on opposite sides in the past." Captain America continued, stepping forward. "And, each one of you is in this prison for a reason. But, these insects, whatever they are, they're marshalling to attack in force. And, when they do, they will destroy everyone and everything here, before swarming to Earth. Fight them with us, and I will personally testify on your behalves at your parole hearings, or do nothing… and wait for them in your cells. It's your choice." His words hung in the air, leaving the villains to choose what they wanted to do.
Mar-Vell was the first released from his cell. In due course, Radioactive Man, Absorbing Man, Abomination, several AIM drones, Blizzard, Skurge the Executioner, Whirlwind, and The Leader joined the team.
"I will fight these bugs." Zemo coyly promised as the heroes passed his cell.
"Keep dreaming, Zemo. I'd rather face a million bugs in front of me than risk one of your daggers in my back." Captain America retorted with a frown.
"Oh, do not tempt me with such beautiful imagery, Captain." Zemo sneered. Miss Marvel cast a lingering glance at the purple-clad villain, pondering his strategic potential.
"Cap?"
"Too dangerous. Trust me." Cap responded, already reading her mind.
"What about some of the Super Skrulls we have packed away? Their combined abilities might be helpful." She then proffered.
"So much as one of those gets loose and we're gonna start having trust issues all over again." Cybernaut remarked in passing.
With the select number of villainous volunteers arranged, Quartermain set about arming them properly. Blizzard had his cryo nozzles hooked up again, Whirlwind received his sawblades back, Skurge accepted his rifles back. Quartermain even let the AIM drones access the local armoury, letting them gear up on rifles and blasters to use against the insectoids. As they did, Thor had some business to attend to. "Executioner, hear me." The thunder god called out as he approached Skurge. "Your Enchantress has fallen into the hands of the fire demon, Surtur. I can ensure that you get a chance to see her freed, but you must fight honourably in this battle." He explained. All Skurge could do was nod solemnly in response.
With the team prepared, the assortment of heroes and villains proceeded back into the lower levels of 42 where evidence of the insectoid's malignant presence was made greatly known. "Those bugs did this…?" A worried Blizzard wondered as he surveyed the damage.
"Aye." A stone-faced Thor affirmed.
"M-Maybe I want back in my cell." Blizzard muttered with a nervous gulp. Despite his nervousness, some of the villains had more than enough energy to expend in the name of destroying the bugs.
"If we live through this, I'm gonna cut you to pieces, Wasp!" Whirlwind threatened the heroine before him. He was stopped short when a piece of metal ricocheted off his helmet and the resounding clang sent vibrations rattling through his body. "Ow!"
"Lay off the lady, airhead. Unless you want me to trap you in that full-metal suit of yours for good…" Cybernaut threatened, tucking one of his irons back into its sleeve. Whirwind loosed a pained exhale at the thought. Wasp just snickered, feeling warmed by his bold defence. Captain America led them to a Y-junction where the debris and damage seemed to worsen. From there he staged his battle plan.
"We'll use this corridor as a choke point, force them to come to us through the smaller opening. Limit their numbers. If we begin to get overrun, we'll fall back in groups, covering our retreat." He stated. "The main fall back position is the hallways leading to the cell block. Radioactive Man, Wasp, and Abosrbing Man will cover us. If they get past us there, fall back to the control room."
As Captain America briefed the assault group, Miss Marvel briefed Quartermain and the rest of the SHIELD personnel on site. "This is our Alamo. We make our final stand right here." She stated within the command room. "As a last resort, I hit the self-destruct sequence and blow the gateway." It was an uncomfortable thought, but a noble sacrifice in the name of sparing Earth a similar infestation. The monitors now revealed the red ring around the prison growing tighter and tighter as the swarm closed in on them…
The teams broke into crews, with all but the fall back team moving ahead. Waves of defenders were designated, positions pinpointed… it was all coming to a head.
"Connor…" The technopath turned, hearing his name softly spoken. Wasp stood close by, looking concerned, fidgeting nervously with her hands as she looked demurely to him. "Be careful out there, okay?" He was on the front team, part of Cap's first wave of defenders.
"Sure thing, Jan." He affirmed, shooting her a soft lighthearted grin. She didn't react in turn.
"I'm serious." Janet implored. "I want you to come back in one piece." Connor softened, realizing she was worried about him.
"I know." He said softly. "I'll be careful. I'll come back. I promise." His words hung in the air and Janet walked slowly forward, slipping her arms around him as she pulled Connor into a gentle hug.
"You better." She whispered. Connor returned the hug, enjoying the soft, warm feel of her bodily contours pressed against his. 'That skintight suit is one of her best ideas, I'm convinced of it.' Janet released him soon after to avoid drawing too much attention and they soon parted ways as the teams divided up. Captain America led Thor, Skurge, Cybernaut, Mar-Vell, Leader, Blizzard, Abomination, the AIM drones and She-Hulk right to the opposite end of the mess hall corridor, where an existing hole in the room would allow the insectoids to get in easily.
"Careful with the lightning. In this space, you'd cook us all." He cautioned Thor and the thunder god nodded.
"I shall save mine storms for more open areas, Captain." He promised. As they continued to prepare and wait, Leader clutched at his head, groaning in pain as the same telepathic torture barraged his synapses again.
"Argh…! They're coming… It's coming!" He cried out in warning. Heroes and villains tensed, ready for anything.
"Everyone, get ready." Miss Marvel announced over comms.
"How many this time?" Cap inquired.
"All of them." Carol responded darkly. With that disturbing fact looming over their heads, the defenders watched the door ahead with bated breath. A sound began to grow; skittering, chittering, like a heavier version of a swarm of ants. It grew louder and louder, approaching the door, which began to bend and bow to the tune of a dozen BANG BANG BANG. It abruptly stopped and the skittering grew louder, now accompanied by beastial shouts and snarls of creatures on the warpath. They had breached the prison.
"I can't take it…!" Leader raved, practically foaming at the mouth as he stumbled back down the corridor, clutching his head. "It's in my head… Make it stop!" He pleaded to anyone who would listen. Blizzard swallowed nervously.
"I, uh… better see if Leader's okay…" He muttered, seeking his own excuse to escape this. But Captain America's hand on his shoulder stopped him in his tracks.
"Stand your ground. Here they come." He ordered. Blizzard whimpered and turned back to look over the barricade of debris they'd formed. The insectoids were getting closer, their shadows could be seen splayed out on the wall at the end. "Hold." Captain America ordered, commanding no itchy trigger-fingers until they insectoids were close enough to stop. "Hold…" The beasts came around the corner, snapping their claws and loosing roars from saliva-coated jaws, charging the barricade. "NOW!" With the thunderous order, everyone exploded into action.
Skurge opened fire with his rifles. Blizzard unleashed freezing cold vapours from his finger nozzles. Mar-Vell forged beam cannons from his transmog gauntlets. Captain America hurled his shield with all his might. Cybernaut sent his irons hurtling as if shot by a railgun while simultaneously discharging his plasma casters down the corridor. Thor flung Mjolnir, obliterate insectoids on the throw as well as during the receive. The AIM drones opened fired with their weaponry. Abomination and She-Hulk held back, waiting for the creatures to get closer.
"Keep fighting! We're holding them back!" The Asgardian boomed as the ranged assault continued.
But then, the creatures held their ground and refused to advance.
"They're… stopping." Blizzard noticed as the team let up, as confused as he was.
"They only stop because it told them." Leader gasped as he shoved his way to the front.
"What is 'it'?" Captain America demanded.
He was about to find out.
From the dark depths of the corridor, the insectoids began to divide as a hulking form moved between them. Massive, metallic wings spread open wide, revealing a chitinous body; a green-purple exoskeleton. It's head shaped like a screaming visage, energy blazed brightly within its eyes as it held aloft a golden staff topped with a ruby-like stone. Power flexed and flared, consuming the length of the rod as the creature loosed an inhuman shriek. A war cry.
"IT!" Leader cried, reacting in turn. "Get out of my head! GET OUT!" He screamed. The bidepal creature pointed its staff towards the assembly, generating a powerful bolt of crimson cosmic energy that struck the barricade and detonated with the force of a missile.
The ensure explosion hurled friend and foe alike down the hall, debris sent hurtling this way and that as smoke and flame consumed the scene. With most of the team down, only the heartiest managed to recover and get back in the fray. Abomination and She-Hulk rushed the insectoids and began beating them into the ground, green blood splattering their fists and bodies as a trail of carnage was left behind. Whirlwind quickly joined the fray, using his powers to send insectoids hurtling into the walls with hurricane force and obliterating them on impact. Then Mar-Vell joined in, the Kree using his arsenal to pick off the bugs who tried to skirt around the gamma behemoths currently crushing them.
It was open warfare now.
The others joined in, but the bugs kept coming and grew ever craftier. Crawling across the ceiling, they dragged one of the three AIM drones into their maws as the two survivors ran for their lives. Poor Blizzard was lost to a sudden swarm of the things, overpowered and knocked down as the bugs surrounded him, his blue-white form lost to the sounds of chittering, screams and tearing flesh. Mar-Vell exchanged guns for a sword and hacked his way through the swarm attempting to crawl up his armored body. Skurge blasted a mountain of the dead to free Thor from their holds, the two Asgardians sharing nods of honorable affirmation as they continued to fight back to back.
"This doesn't look good, Cap!" Cybernaut cried out as he torched dozens of insectoids with his casters while his irons came back coated in green blood, dried and drying. "Knock two down and four more take their place!"
"Agreed!" The supersoldier responded, noting that they had lost their advantages. "Fall back!" The order was swiftly obeyed as heroes and villains left the scene, Mar-Vell providing covering fire while Abomination scooped up a cowering Leader in his grasp.
"Wasp! We're falling back! Get Kreel and Chen ready!" Cybernaut reported over radio.
"We'll be ready! Just get your butts back here!" Moving as fast as they could, team one passed team two as the trio prepared to provide sufficient cover.
"Okay, boys, like we planned." The diminutive heroine called out to her villainous allies. "Roast 'em!" Radioactive Man planted both hands on the shoulders of Absorbing Man, allowing the latter to take on his full radioactive powers to form two pairs of nuclear devastators. Together they rushed the swarm, unleashing scorching beams of raw radiation that reduced the insectoids to ashen atoms, without breaking a sweat.
Team One returned to the cellblock, planning to regroup and fortify here. But at once, the same inhuman shrieking from before drew their attention skyward. The massive winged monster from before was leading the swarm through the opening in the roof and bringing wave after wave of his creatures right to the unprepared defenders. With a guttural shout and a flourish from his golden staff, the bugs obeyed his command and descended en masse.
Leader broke free from Abomination's hold and stumbled across the ground, trying to gather his thoughts and find logic amid the chaos wreaked upon his mind. "Annihil… ugh, hrrn… annihilate? Grah… Annihilation?!" He ranted, attempting to discern the word forced upon his mind trying to perceive itself using the english lexicon. He was getting closer. "It's name…" he gasped in wide-eyed terrified awe, finally figuring it out,
"It's name is Annihilus!"
Looking up in terrified awe of the host attacking them, heroes and villains watched as Annihilus waved his Cosmic Control Rod and order his deadly Annihilation Wave to consume them all…
"Ten minutes until the gateway opens from the other side." Quartermain warily announced.
"The defences aren't gonna hold that long." Miss Marvel gravely deduced. The two shared a look, unspoken acceptance flitting between them. The gateway would have to be destroyed… trapping them here against odds no team, no matter how numerous, could withstand.
Heroes and villains gathered, attacking the Annihilation Wave head on as the cellblock was filled with the droning of the insectoid horde. Above it all, Annihilus orchestrated the fervent fury, his unstoppable forces tearing into the defenders in the name of carnage and chaos. Crimson bolts from his Cosmic Control Rod tore Mandroids asunder while the last of the AIM drones was carried off by the insectoids.
Leader crawled on the ground, struggling to think coherently. "Annihilus… it's controlling them…!" He gasped.
"Kinda obvious!" Wasp retorted, barraging the insectoids with biostings. "They go wherever he waves that crazy stick!" Her words registered with the other Avengers and new battle plan was formed.
"That thing must be using sub-frequency harmonies to control the bugs!" Cybernaut realized. "They're only obeying because Annihilus has it switched on!"
"Then we must take out their leadership!" Thor vowed. "Captain?"
"Agreed!" Captain America affirmed and started giving orders. "SHIELD agents, fall back to the Alamo. Hold the gate! The rest of you with me." Heroes and villains fell in line, moving to new positions… all, that is, except for Abomination.
Blonsky looked up at the descending horde, new numbers replacing those already destroyed. An endless wave after wave of insectoids was coming for them, threatening to ensure their mighty numbers remained unchanged even after the defenders were long dead. "Aw, forget this!" He rumbled, fully intending to desert.
"Abomination!" Leader called after him, catching his attention. "Take me to the gateway." He implored.
"Good idea." Abomination growled as he hoisted Leader up with one arm. "Let's get out of here while we still can."
Calculating angles, Cap hurled his shield and ricocheted it off one bug after another before finally clobbering Annihilus with it. But his shield merely bounced off a field generated by the Cosmic Control Rod. Thor tried next, hammering into Annihilus with his mightiest blows only to find himself rebuffed.
"Not even Mjolnir can touch him!" He realized to his horror. Wasp and Cybernaut tried next, dumping plasma blasts and biostings into the force field.
"Nothing's getting through!" The heroine cried out.
"Conventional weaponry isn't working, we've got to try something else!" The technopath echoed.
Now it was the horde's turn to attack.
The Annihilation Wave slammed into the catwalks, tearing through Mandroids and knocking Radioactive Man to his doom as he fell into the cosmic void below. Whirlwind was carted off next, his screams echoing through the prison as the insectoids made to consume him. The defenders were dwindling, time and options were running out…
Clay watched with a gnawing sense of defeat as heroes and villains failed to stop Annihilus. "It's too late. Blow the door." He muttered.
"You do it, Quartermain." Carol responded. "If I'm going out, I'm going out fighting." She made to leave but, before she could, Abomination and Leader powered through the door. Miss Marvel and Quartermain sprang into action.
"The computer!" Sterns cried and Abomination promptly swatted Quartermain out of the way, the SHIELD agent knocked out as Leader scrambled for the controls. Both paused as the thrum of photons filled the air and a golden glow lit both of Miss Marvel's clenched fists.
"Touch that computer, and the last thing that'll pass through that oversized mind of yours is my glowing fist." Carol threatened through gritted teeth.
"We are not trying to escape!" Leader cried.
"Wait… we're not?" A confused Abomination sputtered. Leader carried on, ignoring him.
"I am going to disrupt Annihilus' energy. The energy that's protecting him."
"How?" Miss Marvel demanded.
"I can attempt to cram forty-three years of Quantum physics into that primitive brain of yours, or you can let me do this!" Leader sardonically retorted. Miss Marvel frowned, half-tempted to blast him for the remark alone. But if she knew one thing about the Leader, it was that his intellect was unmatched. He could think on a level the top army brass couldn't even begin to comprehend. They played checkers while he was playing chess, out-thinking and out-maneuvering everyone through sheer brainpower.
So if anyone knew what he was doing, it would be him.
"You got two minutes. Then I'm blowing up the gate and you with it." Her ultimatum delivered, Miss Marvel relented as Leader began rapidly punching commands into the keyboard…
The Annihilation Wave continued to attack the defenders as heroes and villains struggled to stay in the fight. Mar-Vell was airborne now, swatting bugs out of the sky with blades protruding from his transmog gauntlets. She-Hulk managed to generate enough thunderclaps to keep a suitable bubble around her in order to smash any insectoid foolish enough to come within arm's reach. Thor, Wasp and Cybernaut continued their own barrages, as did Captain America. A seemingly futile effort until suddenly,
"Cap, get ready! The Leader's gonna disrupt that Annihilus-creature's energy shield." Miss Marvel announced over their comms. With hope rekindled, the heroes gathered for a final stand, Annihilus bellowing between great flaps of his massive wings as he ordered his Annihilation Wave to being final maneuvers.
And then a piercing high-pitch frequency filled the room, generated by 42's own loudspeaker systems, resonating at a level only insectoid antennas could register. It was stronger than the power exerted by the Cosmic Control Rod, the artefact reacting so severely that it fell from Annihilus' hands, the monster dropping it with a cry and revealing his weakness.
"He's wide open!" Captain America cried. "Hit him hard, Avengers!"
The team responded, Skurge lightning up Annihilus with a volley of blasts as Mar-Vell generator his disruptor cannon from the power cells on his back and unleashed mighty blasts of his own. No longer protected, Annihilus was knocked this way and that by the barrages, and the heroes continued to strike true.
"Wasp! Set me up!" Cybernaut called out.
"On it!" Janet rushed in, barraging Annihilus with rapid-fire biostings. He raised an arm to shield himself as Wasp completely her flyby. Cybernaut quickly took flight and primed his pneumatic knuckles.
"You line him up-" he delivered a powerful uppercut right to Annihilus' unsuspecting chin, snapping his head up. Hovering above, Connor deployed his plasma casters, "and I'll knock him down!" Twin orange beams slammed into his foe's chitinous carpace and powered him across the space. Wasp promptly grew to massive proportions and hammered Annihilus with a giant-sized punch that pitched him towards Thor. "Smooth moves, Jan!" Connor complimented as she shrank back down.
"You too!" Wasp responded, beaming. "You and I make a pretty good team! Heck, we're an awesome team! It's like we were made to do this together!" She remarked, riding the high of succeeding in combat. Cybernaut grinned from ear to ear, saying nothing but turning to watch as Mjolnir powered into the back of Annihilus' head and drove him towards the catwalks. Cap's shield slammed into his midsection, driving him sideways as She-Hulk snatched him out of the air, hoisted him over her shoulders, and promptly delivered a hard-hitting fallaway slam.
With Annihilus down for the count, Thor pounced on the Cosmic Control Rod and shattered the ruby head with an electric blow from Mjolnir, obliterating the device. A shockwave rolled out, the insectoids chittering to themselves with a chorus of chirps as their sentience was restored.
And as one, they turned on Annihilus.
No longer in control, Annihilus loosed a fearful shriek as his own Annihilation Wave swooped down and carried him off, disappearing into the void of the Negative Zone with screaming cries of terror. With them gone, 42 fell deathly quiet as heroes and villains alike paused to recognize their victory…
The prison was an absolute mess but the day had still been saved. Thanks, in the end, surprisingly, to the Leader. "Ahh… I can think again." Sterns breathed in relief. "The noise is gone. The pain is gone." The Avengers gathered around, suddenly curious. "It was Annihilus' mind. So chaotic, unlike anything I've encountered, like it was a manifestation of the Negative Zone itself." He explained. "It could feel our universe encroaching on its anti-matter universe, and all it knew was that it had to destroy us. To destroy the positive matter, to annihilate life itself."
"Almost like white blood cells purging unknowns." Cybernaut commented. "The Negative Zone took notice of our increased presence and reacted."
"Are we sure it's the zone itself? Or just Annihilus?" Miss Marvel wondered.
"That, I think, is a question for Iron Man and Mister Fantastic to explore." The technopath responded. "Something tells me they're gonna want to conduct a more thorough study of the Negative Zone after this." The two strode ahead to reclaim Leader and Abomination in order to return them to their cells. Wasp and She-Hulk watched them go.
"Gotta admit, your boyfriend is a jack of all trades. Good with gear and in a fight." She-Hulk remarked with a nudge to Janet.
"Huh? Boyfriend?" The heroine spluttered, shooting her a confused look.
"Cybernaut." The jade giantess replied with a quick tilt of her head. "You two seemed close and I just figured you were dating." Wasp's eyes shot wide open in surprise.
"OH! Oh nononono nothing like that! He's a close friend, a work friend, th-there's nothing going on between us. Nothing at all!" She hurriedly explained.
Her mild panic attack over, Janet failed to notice Connor shoot a glance over his shoulder, having caught every word.
Klaxons began to blare, drawing the attention of the Avengers to the gateway. The doors slid back, revealing the SHIELD agents arriving for shift change. They stopped suddenly upon seeing the damage and debris everywhere, as well as both heroes and villains standing together, evidently in the aftermath of a titanic battle.
"Gentlemen." Captain America greeted nonchalantly. "Welcome to Forty-Two."
Later that evening…
"I hear the ticking of the clock, I'm lying here the room's pitch dark… I wonder where you are tonight, no answer on the telephone… And the night goes by so very slow… Oh I hope that it won't end though… Alone…" The mournful crooning of Heart filled Connor's earbuds as he unleashed his capabilities upon the Avengers' training room defences. His irons spun faster than ever before, orbiting turrets and knocking energy orbs out of the sky with his precise motions. His expression was grim and set, a clenched jaw the only signs of his frustration as he drove his boot into a turret and knocked it off its mountings. "'Til now I always got by on my own, I never really cared until I met you… And now it chills me to the bone, How do I get you alone?"
"How do I get you alone?"
The lyrics of the song resonated in his mind, fueling emotions that had been bubbling up since forever. The woman of his dreams, the person of his fantasies… why did fate tease him every day? 'He's a close friend, a work friend, th-there's nothing going on between us.' She'd said, crushing every hope that had been built up… and after such tantalizing interactions.
With a growl, he summoned his irons and formed a staff, smashing clean through a concrete barricade and shattering a rocket battery.
"You don't know how long I have wanted, to touch your lips and hold you tight… You don't know how long I have waited, and I was going to tell you tonight…" The next line of lyrics forced him to stop, Connor literally freezing in place as he listened to the words and felt each one resonate in his soul. His expression fell and he sighed. "But the secret is still my own… And my love for you is still unknown… Alone." Releasing a shuddering exhale, Connor threw himself into the powerful synth bridge, bobbing his head in time with each struck key as he vented in his own way.
"Till now I always got by on my own, I never really cared until I met you… And now it chills me to the bone, how do I get you alone?" The hard, grinding guitar that followed was just what Connor needed and he started bobbing even more vigorously, throwing his irons at top speed, impaling them deep into a wall on either side of an electron defence grid. Suddenly channeling his turbulent emotions into his magnets, he unleashing his irons in a high-velocity orbiting attack that pummeled the metal until it was torn apart by a rapid-fire hail of shrapnel.
As the music began to fade, Connor recalled his irons with a sigh, shoving them into the slips in his pants. He turned to leave and was struck by the sight of Carol lingering by the entrance, still clad in her complete Miss Marvel costume. Pondering how long she'd been there for, he yanked out his earbuds as crimson crept across his cheeks. "Carol, hi." He quickly greeted. "What brings you here?"
"Thought I'd get in a late-night bout… clearly I wasn't the only one." She replied, striding a little closer. "But I can't help but feel like that's not why you're here." She mused, crossing her arms. Connor cleared his throat rather nervously.
"W-What do you mean?"
"Come on, Connor, you don't fight like that. You're more careful, slower, you feel out your enemy. You don't just lash out like that, not without a good reason." Carol explained. "What's eating you?" Rubbing the back of his head, the technopath loosed a nervous laugh.
"All that Air Force training coming to a head, eh?" He mused. Carol cocked a brow knowingly, as if pressing him to continue. The pressure soon got to him and Connor sighed as his shoulders slumped. "Can you keep a secret?" He asked. She nodded. "Well… see…" How was he supposed to phrase this? How could he possibly convey the weighty truth behind his secret? Maybe being straightforward would be best… but Carol was Janet's friend… how would she react? Carol tilted her head, watching his changing emotions as Connor battled frustration, regret, yearning and depression all at once. He sighed again, gripping his mask and pulling it down around his neck.
"I… I love Janet, Carol. I've loved her ever since I met her. She's so perfect, so cheery and bright… so beautiful…" That caused Carol's eyes to widen, clearly shocked and surprised. "I'm… hopelessly enraptured by her. She… She dominates my thoughts, my dreams, my fantasies. I know it's wrong, I know she's still dealing with Hank… but I can't help it…" A heavier sigh escaped his lips and he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "She's… She's perfect."
"Connor…" Carol whispered, stepping closer. Now she understood, recalling the words uttered by the heroine at the end of the 42 incident. "You've… You've loved her all this time?" She repeated. Connor nodded slowly.
"She's… the reason I'm here. The Avengers responded to the explosion at Hammer's lab, the day I got these," he revealed, holding out his metal-encrusted hands, "Hammer probably would've left me for dead… but Janet pulled me from the rubble. The first thing I saw when I came to was her face… a beautiful, beautiful face…" He trailed off, the memory burned so acutely into his mind there was no way to shake it. "I guess that's when it started. But then she came to me, encouraged me to try to restart my life again… and I've loved her since the day we met." Connor replied in affirmation. His words hung in the air and Carol quietly comprehended their gravity.
"Have you told her? Or anyone else for that matter?" She queried.
"No. You're the first… and the only." Connor replied. "I've wanted to… for so long I've debated telling her, even now with Hank off the team. But everytime I heard about how hopeful she was that he'd come back or come around, I stopped myself. Even now, when he's nowhere to be found and she's heard nothing from him… I wanted to tell her. But she's not interested. She doesn't see me that way." He sighed again. "And I'm just left with nothing."
"Oh Connor…" Carol gently cupped his cheek, turning him back towards her. "I can't imagine how it must feel. But I can tell through your words alone that you love her, truly and deeply."
"With all my heart." Connor admitted, fighting back the urge to cry. "E-Everything I've ever done, Carol…"
"I know. I know…" She whispered soothingly. "You're a good man, Connor." Drawing him in, Carol pulled the technopath into a hug, wrapping her arms around him reassuringly as Connor did likewise, thankful he finally had someone to lean on. "You can come and talk to me about this whenever you need to." She promised.
"You won't tell her, will you?" He asked.
"No, of course not." She replied and he loosed a relieved exhale.
"Thank you, Carol." He whispered, shoulders sagging as he allowed himself to lose his burden.
"We're teammates. We have each other's backs." Carol mused as they parted. She offered a sympathetic smile and patted his shoulders. "Remember, Connor. Anytime." He responded with a small, sad smile.
"I'll take you up on that."
In the shadow of the entry door, a shrunken Janet paused, viewing the embrace whose context was lost on her. Having only arrived just now to witness this, the diminutive heroine couldn't help but feel a sudden surge… a jealous desire to be the one hugging Connor as she questioned why he was associating so closely with Carol…