"Scott's not back yet is she?" Hope asks Hank, who is sitting at their kitchen table and enjoying her coffee while reading the news off her tablet.
"No, Honey." Hank responds, setting down her drink and looking up at her son. "She said not to worry. She was just getting things out of her system."
Hope slowly slides into a seat nearest Hank, looking lost in thought. "She's never been gone this long..." Hope says. "At least not when she can help it."
"It'll be alright." Hank says reassuringly.
"Even when she's with her daughter, she always keeps in touch." Hope rambles.
"Just give her some time." Hank responds. "She loves you."
Hope looks up toward Hank trying to read her expression.
"She'll come back." Hank reinforces her message. "Isn't that right Janet." Hank calls over Hope's shoulder.
"Where else is she going to go?" Janet answers.
"Honey!" Hank exclaims.
Janet walks back into the kitchen holding a drink and carrying a random book. "I'm sorry, I'm just being realistic." She looks at Hope for understanding.
"Hope studies his mother for a long moment before responding. "She has an apartment she can go to."
"And you've checked that apartment..." Janet responds. "Multiple times."
Hope looks down feeling a little guilty. "I just don't know where else she could have gone." He admits. "She's not answering her phone. Her daughter hasn't seen her. She hasn't been home. Her creepy friends aren't saying anything..."
"She's probably busy, Honey." Hank inserts. "You know how distracted she gets when she's working on something."
"Working on what?" Janet asks. "Aside from the occasional side job, she mostly works for us." Janet looks down to dwell on the thought. "Or with her friends..." She looks up at Hank and Hope, concerned. "You don't think she's in jail again?"
"Honey, Scott's not in jail again..." Hank shakes her head and turns back to her coffee in frustration.
"She's not." Hope adds before looking down, a little embarrassed. "I checked."
"Well, she has to be somewhere." Janet states. "She took her suit with her... and some of your particles..." Janet looks up, studying Hank's face. "And some discs..."
"She'll be fine..." Hank says casually sipping her coffee, but not looking up from her tablet.
Janet furls her eyebrows toward Hank. "And that doesn't bother you?" She asks Hank.
"What doesn't?" Hank says, looking up finally.
"That Scott Lang, the big screw up, just up and left with one of your suits and a somewhat substantial amount of equipment?" Janet reiterates her question.
"No..." Hank's eyes dart away as she answers.
"Dad..." Hope calls, "Do you know something?"
"No, I don't." Hank says pretending to study her tablet again. "She's a big girl." She adds. "She's matured since we last..." Hank looks upward, fishing for excuses. "In the last three months.
"Hank!" Janet says firmly as she reaches for and snatches Hank's tablet. She sets it down on the table hard. "Where is she? You can't lie to me!"
Hank reaches up and removes her glasses, pretending to wipe them. "You know, I don't really need these glasses anymore," she deflects, "not since the changes."
"Hank! Stop stalling!" Janet demands.
"She's fine." Hank responds. "She's probably with her friends."
"Dad, when have you ever approved of her friends?" Hope asks.
"Not those friends..." Hank says, referring to Scotts irreputable colleagues. "Her other friends..." Hank raises her coffee for a sip. "From the airport." She mumbles.
"The airport?" Janets asks, somewhat confused.
"Why would Scott be with the Avengers?" Hope asks, worried. "They're not fighting again, are they?" He sounds legitimately concerned now.
"No," Hank responds, "She just wanted a second opinion."
"Second opinion?" Hope asks, somewhat terrified. "On me?"
"No!" Hank responds. "On her hypothesis."
"Hank..." Janet says, very worried. "What are you talking about?"
Hank is having a hard time keeping eye contact with Janet. "You know..." she waves her coffee in the air, "Her silly... time idea."
Janet's eyes go extremely wide. "Hank, you promised me you'd drop it."
"I did!" Hank insists. "I just thought, casually mentioned to Scott that maybe they'd know something. They've got a better lab. They can probably conduct safer tests."
"It's not about safe testing!" Janet snaps loudly at Hank. Her eyes begin to dart around as she thinks about the situation. "We have to stop them!" She states. "Maybe there's still time." She grabs a coat hanging by the nearest door and asks, "Where's the van?"
Hank answers by looking away and making a very guilty looking face.
"You've got to be shitting me!" Janet says angrily.
"Honey! Language!" Hank replies.
"What's going on?" Hope asks.
"They have the quantum tunnel!" Janet replies. "You gave them the quantum tunnel!"
"Honey, I... Argh!" Hank grips her chest.
"Dad!" Hope reaches for his parent, but is overcome with pain before he can get close enough.
Hank falls to the floor curled in pain. She see's Hope's feet flailing on the tile as he undergoes the changes too. Her eyes dart across the kitchen to Janet, who is also curled up on the floor. Her eyes are locked onto Hanks angrily as her features begin to shift. Her hairline seems to raise significantly, her shoulders become noticeably broader, and her chin widens in chiseled fashion. Her enraged eyes however, never break away from Hank's and as the pain spasm finally begin to die down, he asks Hank angrily, "What did you do?!"
*** At a random shopping mall in Iowa ***
Natasha Romanoff is sitting on a bench across from the public restrooms. There is a Disney shop to her left and a jewelry shop across from it. She is looking at her phone and reading news about different occurrences around the world. It shocks her that so much politics have changed in the last year, simply due to gender. She looks up briefly to see a child staring at her, his mother studying the nearest shops.
"Why does he have makeup, Mommy?" The child asks, pointing at Natasha.
The mother looks down at him then at Natasha. "That's not a nice thing to ask Sheila." The mother tells the little boy before looking back up towards Natasha. "I'm sorry. He's too young to remember." She sweeps up the child and rushes away before Natasha can respond.
'Sheila?' Natasha thinks. 'It's baffling that some people have forgotten already.' Natasha can't help but feel a little embarrassed at still looking masculine. Her eyes wander around the mall and not further down the way she spot's a Victoria's Secret. Her gaze lingers for a drawn out moment of longing as she studies random undergarments on display. A sad wave of heartbreak envelopes her as she realizes she can't shop like she used to. She crosses her arms, feeling her stocky torso, and resists the painful emotions she is experiencing.
Natasha frowns when she realizes the pain she is feeling is actually not in her head. Her arms grip her sides more harshly as sharp pain engulfs her. She rolls to her side as her chest seems to erupt into sharp convulsions. Her eyes dart around the shopping mall and she spots the mother and child from earlier. Both are also on the floor writhing in pain. She looks over the balcony and can see several other shoppers going through the same experience.
Various emotions envelope her as it suddenly occurs to her what is happening. She feels wildly hopeful that she is turning back, but fearful that this could be something else. Despite the pain, she tries hard to concentrate on what she is feeling. She can sense her feet are getting smaller. Her hips are also thinning. Trying to raise her hands, she clearly feels her breasts have already formed. The most odd sensation is her jaw shifting, and her hair seems to grow a little more rapidly also.
When the pain subsides, she feels almost fearful of looking. She hardly has any choice as the window from the jewelry store is at the perfect angle for her reflection. Natasha stands up slowly to get a better look at herself. Her clothes are now baggy, but her features are very apparent. She touches her face and feels somewhat humored at the heavy makeup she had caked on before. It makes her smile and chuckle lightly.
"What happened, Mommy?" Sheila, the child from earlier asks.
"You're back to normal!" the mother now father responds, but suddenly reaches for his throat. Natasha watches the parent, who seems to be in shock. "No! Why?" he asks.
Several other voices call out from around the shopping center. Natasha is not paying any attention to any in particular. She looks toward the restrooms. 'I have to tell Clint.' She thinks. Without hesitation she rushes toward the restrooms and past a traumatized looking woman walking out of the mens room. Natasha moves past her and pushes the bathroom door open. "Clint!" she calls.
No answer.
"Clint?" Natasha calls again, somewhat worried.
When there is once again no answer she decides to go in.
"Natasha..." a woman whispers before Nat can complete her first step into the restroom.
Natasha turns back to see the woman from only seconds ago. She doesn't recognize her.
"You're back to normal..." the woman says.
"Yeah," Natasha responds, somewhat surprised, "I am." She studies the woman, trying to recall her face. Natasha's eyes go wide after spotting the familiar wide brimmed collar of her friend's favorite coat. She takes a step back, taking a deeper look. "Clint?"
"How did this happen?" Clint asks.
Natasha still feels shocked at the sudden unexpected emotion that envelopes her. Without thinking, she starts to chuckle. Soon she is actually laughing.
"This isn't funny, Nat!" Clint protests.
"It's a little funny." She says, grabbing her friend's shoulders. "Let me look at you." Clint does not seem to resist as Natasha forcibly turns her friend from side to side. Since Clint tends to wear larger jackets, most of her new figure is hidden, but it's clear there is a somewhat smaller female frame under the clothes.
"Have you gotten your fill?" Clint asks, defensively. "It's so loud in here, all of a sudden." She crosses her arms. Natasha can't help but still smile at the unexpected changes. Clint looks away. "What are we going to do, Nat?" She asks.
"Well, I know what I'm going to do." Natasha says confidently.
"Hmm?" Clint asks, looking back toward her friend.
"I'm going to Victoria's Secret for some shopping." Natasha rushes past Clint happily, who still seems confused.
"I'm serious, Nat!" Clint calls as she starts to follow. "We have to do something!"
"I am doing something!" Natasha calls back happily.
*** On Olympus ***
The magical chains binding Thor, Hela, and Valkyrie have dissipated but it hardly makes a difference. The three prisoners fall to the floor curling up in pain. Their audience all seem to be experiencing the same problem. Shouts, grunts, and heavy breathing fill the room with hardly any words exchanged. When the process was finally over, the first people to move were those that had already experienced this.
Valkyrie looks up toward Thor, but she is immediately distracted by Hela, who is already standing. She looks ready to make a move. Her eyes continue to glare ragefully ahead. Valkyrie follows her gaze to see a woman sitting on the Throne. Hela takes a step forward, but stops a split second before a bolt of lightning strikes the ground in front of her.
The Woman's eyes dart up, glaring angrily toward Hela. "I wouldn't be king if I was foolish enough to leave myself open in front of my enemies."
Hela smirks while she relaxes from her attack pose. "I was under the impression the infinity stones had no effect here." She tells the woman.
The King squints her eyes toward Hela before rising to her feet. Her gold and silver armor begins to slide down and she reaches up to catch it. "I may have embellished the truth a little." the woman replies.
"Zeus?" Thor asks in an extremely young and feminine sounding voice. "What?" she grabs her throat. "No!" she turns toward Hela, who never takes her eyes off Zeus. "No." She says again, this time looking toward Valkyrie. "This can't be!"
"Thor?" Valkyrie asks, already knowing the answer.
"Why me?!" Thor cries out. She tries to cross her arms but quickly realizes she can not. Thor's eyes lower downward to see one of the largest pairs of breasts she has ever seen. "No!" She shouts. "Not this! Anything buy this!"
"Thor, it's okay." Valkyrie tries to calm her.
"No, it's not!" Thor argues loudly. "This can't be happening!"
"Will you stop blubbering!" Hela shouts.
"I'm inclined to agree." Zeus agrees.
"I don't want to be a girl!" Thor complains. "Did you do this?" She asks Zeus. "Please don't do this to us!" Thor pleads.
"This wasn't me, you moron!" Zeus responds.
"Was it you?" Thor turns toward Hela.
"Why would I do this?" Hela says rhetorically.
Thor looks around the room confused. She slowly spins around looking at the other gods in the room. They all look just as confused. Eventually her eyes land on her other companion. "Valkyrie?" she asks.
"No, Thor." Valkyrie answers. "Maybe it was your friends." She suggests. "On Earth."
"On Earth?" Thor asks. "They can't..." She looks down, shaking their head. "They shouldn't."
"Bring a seer in here!" Zeus demands of the nearest guards.
"Zeus, all Mighty," Thor addresses the King of Olympus, "please tell me it was not Midgar. They have no idea of the fate that awaits them."
"Don't be preposterous!" Zeus snaps toward Thor as she looks down toward him. "There are an untold number of planets out there, and the stones are still scattered across the cosmos. It would be impossible for it to be Midgar again."
"My Lord." a couple of royal advisors approach the throne from behind Thor. They are followed by a tall brightly colored man with golden eyes. "It was Midgar." One of the advisors says, before the seer can deliver the news himself.
"Midgar?" Zeus asks. "But how?"
"It seems, they have acquired a second gauntlet, my Liege." The seer says. "And a second set of... stones?" He seems extremely confused by this.
"A second set?" Zeus asks in disbelief. "You told me there was only one set!" He shouts at a random unknown god out in the stands.
"There should be, my Lord." The god answers. "I don't know how..."
"But..." Thor interrupts, "if they used the stones on Midgar, won't that..."
Zeus looks at Thor somewhat confused. "Won't that what?" She asks her.
"Cause the Emergence?" Valkyrie asks, finishing Thor's question.
Zeus looks down, thinking about it for a second. "Oh, that? Yes, certainly." She had literally forgotten their previous conversation already. "I'm sure it has to have sped up the cycle."
"How long?" Thor asks, pushing long golden hair out of her face. "How long do they have?"
Zeus looks down at her, then shifts her eyes back up toward the seer. "A few days, my Lord." The seer answers. "No more than a fortnight if I had to guess."
"Less than a fortnight?" Thor asks, mostly to herself. "I have to warn them!"
"Warn them?" Zeus asks as she huffs. "How? You forget again, you're still my prisoners."
"If I could just use the ax, My Lord!" Thor recommends as she gestures toward it. "We'll be there and back in a jiffy!"
Zeus scrunches her eyebrows, mostly confused by this new word, Jiffy. "And what makes you think I would trust you to bring it back?" She asks Thor.
"I'll bring it back." Thor pleads. "Or you can go with me!"
"Or," Zeus interrupts her, "I can use it to go to Midgar, right now, take their infinity stones, and leave them all to suffer their fate." She crosses her arms as she lets her idea settle on everyone's minds.
The throne room goes silent for a long moment.
"Why would you do that?" Thor asks, completely baffled.
"Your friends clearly can't be trusted." Zeus answers.
"They're heroes, my King." Thor tries to defend.
"No one should wield that type of power!" Zeus snaps back. She raise her hand to stroke her chin. The feeling of not having a beard noticeably surprises her. "When you think of it, the only people who can be trusted with such power are the gods." She turns toward Thor with a look of elation.
"But... Lord Zeus..." Thor begins to plead.
"It's settled then!" Zeus declares. "In the interest of protecting the nine realms, nay, the universe, I must collect the stones from Midgar!" She turns and reaches for Stormbreaker.
"My Lord, don't!" Thor calls out as Zeus grips the ax.
"Hmmph!" Zeus grunts, as she cannot lift it. She lets go and glares at it, before trying again. "Grr..." She growls, but it doesn't make a move. She keeps trying.
Thor is somewhat confused now also, and she looks to Valkyrie for answers. She makes a face and mouths silent words as she gestures toward Zeus.
"What?" Thor whispers.
Valkyrie covers her mouth from Zeus and whispers a little louder. "Call your ax, and let's get out of here."
Thor looks at Zeus struggling with the ax and wonders if it'll work. Without wasting a moment, she reaches out to it.
Nothing...
Thor shakes her hand, hoping it'll make a difference, but now both her and Zeus look foolish.
"What're you doing?" Zeus asks, spotting Thor from the corner of her eye.
"I was just curious..." Thor says defensively.
"You were trying to escape!" Zeus declares as she steps away from the ax.
"No." Thor protests. "I was uhm..." she looks toward Valkyrie and says, "Run!" They both take off toward the exit.
"Stop those traitors!" Zeus shouts.
Thor and Valkyrie begin pushing their way past the unprepared guards and seer. The sound of thunder begins to escalate as Zeus prepares to make a move. A clearing opens up for Thor to make a break for it, when suddenly someone dressed in all black armor appears right in front of her.
"I'm sorry brother." Hela says, as she surprisingly stabs her brother, now sister, in the abdomen. "I can't let you stop Asgard from being reborn." Hela continues. She twists her blade causing searing pain to course through the fresh wound.
Thor peers down at her injury, then up toward Hela. "You are the worst... sister..." Her comment makes her miss Loki dearly and she wonders how she or he is doing now. Everything seems to fade as she falls to her knees.
"Thor!" Valkyrie shouts as she rushes to her aid. Hela looks at her, smirks, then teleports away.
"Find her! She can't have gotten far!" Zeus shouts, just as Thor passes out.