(MCU) Arcs Collide: Chapter 10 – Uninvited Guests

Chapter 10 – Uninvited Guests

Tony turned toward the doors to see his girlfriend walking in with a soft smile on her face. She was wearing her casual clothes: a white shirt under a brown leather jacket and jeans.

She began walking toward him but was suddenly interrupted when Dum-E rolled toward her, beeping while holding a ball in his robotic arm.

With her smile growing ever so slightly, she stopped in place, rubbed his metal affectionately, and asked, “What’s going on, buddy? Wanna play catch, do you?”

Tony couldn’t stop the smile that curled on his lips. Carol was fascinated with his AIs since they met. She told him about the so-called ‘Supreme Intelligence’ AI that ruled over the race that kidnapped her and how she was brainwashed to believe in it.

Although Tony, Helen, Strange, and a trusted therapist used BARF to help her get through her trauma, she also said that there is a deep part of her that is happy to see that, just like people, not all AIs had to be selfish or sinister.

By this point, Carol had practically adopted all of his AIs as family, just like he always intended. Taking her example, the rest of the people in the tower did the same, which truly moved Tony. With the old Avengers, his AIs were at best treated as servants, but most of the time, they were treated with hostility, especially after the Ultron incident.

Carol took a particular shine to Friday and now looked at his baby girl as her own daughter as well.

Dum-E nodded his metal arm up and down with another burst of beeps. Carol chuckled, took the ball from his metallic hand, and threw it to the far end of the lab without using her power. Dum-E used his wheels to turn in place and rolled toward the ball.

Carol just shook her head, amused, as she kept approaching him.

She bent down and gave him a peck on the lips before taking a seat next to him. She looked down at the plans he had just finished reviewing before asking, “Busy as always, I see?”

Tony gave her his most charming smile before saying, “I always have time for the hottest woman in the solar system.”

Carol snorted, but her eyes were bright with love and appreciation.

Their relationship had grown over the past year. By now, Carol was practically living with him in their room (formerly his). Tony had actually bought a ring just a week ago and was now waiting for the right time to pop the question.

Carol opened her mouth to say something, but Friday’s voice beat her to it, “Boss? Mom?”

Tony did mention Carol took Friday as her daughter. Well, his baby girl was fast to enjoy having herself a mother figure. She sometimes even slipped and called him dad, which always sent a special kind of warmth through his heart.

Carol smiled at the nearest camera, “Yes, sweetie?”

Friday did sound apologetic when she spoke, “I hate to interrupt when both of you are lovey-dovey like that, but we have a problem.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. From his point of view, there was always a problem. Nonetheless, he asked, “What is it, Fri?”

“We received a notification from the planetary detection system. A large object, seemingly a spaceship, is entering the planet’s atmosphere. No communication has been received. Its current trajectory will land it on an island not far from Norway in the next couple of hours,” Friday informed in her usual calm Irish voice.

Tony actually began to worry. Could it be Thanos already? It’s far too soon for him to show up; they are barely ready as is. Not able to keep said worry out of his voice, Tony asked again, “Have the council been notified?”

Friday’s answer came immediately, “Yes, Boss. As the visuals confirmed, the spaceship seems to be of the transport variety. As such, it isn’t equipped with weapons. The council chose to send heavy hitters who can get there fast enough. Uncle Rhodey is busy with Mr. Cage and Grandpa Fury. Stranger Danger is away on a training trip with Miss Chavez. So the council asked to send you and Mom to check it out.”

Tony felt it when Carol reached over to take his hand in hers and squeeze it for comfort. She gave him a reassuring smile as she replied to Friday, “We will handle it, honey.”

Tony let out a heavy sigh. Carol smirked at him and said, “Come on, Tones. The sooner we get back, the sooner we get to our weekly practice session.”

“Oh?” Tony perked up and raised a suggestive eyebrow.

Carol laughed as she mock-punched him on the shoulder before replying, “You know I meant our powers practice.” When she saw Tony’s pout, she added teasingly, “And if we still have the stamina, maybe we will get to do the other practice too.” She finished with a wink.

With that, both of them went to suit up for the new mission. But all of this reminded Tony of another memory.

Flashback

Tony didn’t seem to notice the door opening until a voice he had learned to love recently called, “Tony, we got trouble.”

Tony turned his head, the same as everybody else, to see Carol and Rhodey walking inside the room, followed by the Defenders and the newest member of the team, Yelena Belova.

She had contacted SHIELD a couple of days ago with an urgent message. After Phil’s team cleared her, Carol and Rhodey went for a meeting with her. And now here they were, and it didn’t sound good.

Tony sighed, “Why do all the troubles always come back to me? Aren’t you two the leaders of the Avengers? It took me some work to pull off, you know.”

Tony could hear many snickers and chuckles around the room.

Rhodey just smirked and replied calmly, “It’s hardly our fault you are a genius with valuable input and skills in a lot of areas.”

Carol side-eyed Rhodey for that comment before saying, “I think you will want to hear this for yourself, Tony.”

Tony looked around the room, sighed, and called out, “Okay, everyone below the age of legal drinking, go down to the training room, labs, or any place you want to enjoy yourselves. Anyone who wants to talk business or help the kids, there are many available rooms in the tower. And anyone who needs to be here, grab a seat.”

A couple of minutes later, the room was cleared of everyone but Tony, Carol, Rhodey, Yelena, Sharon, and the Defenders.

Tony looked at the blonde Russian and asked, “So, Ms. Belova, I understand you are going to supply the entertainment to this party. The stage is yours.”

Yelena gave everyone around the room an odd look. Carol was the one to understand it and answered her, “He is always like that. Just tell him.”

Yelena nodded before speaking with a thick Russian accent, “Until a week ago, I was part of the Black Widow program…”

“Wait, what do you mean a week ago? I thought SHIELD ended the program over a decade ago with an operation in Budapest.” Tony asked with wide eyes and a surprised tone.

Yelena’s eyes narrowed, but her tone remained unchanged, “Dreykov escaped that day. Natalia only managed to almost kill his daughter. He rebuilt the program in secret with the help of Hydra.”

Tony’s own eyes narrowed, and he spat, “Of course they helped.” Then he raised an eyebrow at the blonde and pointed out, “You speak as if you know Romanoff personally.”

“She is my sister,” commented Yelena in her usual emotionless tone.

Tony discovered he could choke on air in that moment. Rhodey gave him a few slaps on the back, and when Tony looked at him, the smirk on the man’s face made it obvious he knew and waited for Tony’s reaction.

Tony glared at him for a moment before looking back at Yelena and wondered aloud, “Natasha never mentioned a family. Actually, she straight-up declared she never had one.”

Yelena shrugged before saying, “Not surprising. Our parents gave us to the Red Room, and she left me behind when she escaped.”

Tony nodded gravely. He knew better than most what it felt like to be betrayed by Romanoff. He felt convinced enough to ask, “So how can I help you, Ms. Belova?”

Yelena pulled a vial filled with transparent reddish liquid from her pocket and laid it on the table. Tony gave the vial a long look before his eyes returned to the widow in front of him. “After Natalia escaped, Dreykov developed a mind-controlling substance so none of us would defy him again. A week ago, an ex-widow used this red substance to break the control over me. I thought about looking for Natalia, but for clear reasons, I was reluctant. And then I heard your press conference and decided you would be the safest bet, Dr. Stark.”

Tony nodded. “It’s just Tony. I get it. So we need to replicate this... let’s call it red dust, and free the other widows.” After receiving a nod, he asked, “Do you know where the base is?”

Yelena shook her head but had more to say, “But your SHIELD managed to find someone who does. But that is not the only problem; the widows will fight back to protect Dreykov, and the man turned his daughter into an unstoppable killing machine called Taskmaster. It will not be easy.”

Tony leaned back on the couch he sat on and said thoughtfully, “If we create enough of the red dust, someone will be able to release it into the venting system, freeing all the widows at once. For the rest, well, you have our two strategists here.” He pointed to Rhodey and Carol.

Carol said from his right, “We should probably keep tabs on your parents but not act until Tony has enough of the red dust ready. We don’t know if Dreykov keeps an eye on them, and if he does, we will be showing our hand to him.”

Rhodey nodded in agreement before adding, “It will be best if we divide forces. I, Luke, Jessica, and Vision will handle your parents. Can’t take a risk with a Soviet super-soldier. Carol, Tony, Matt, and Danny can handle the widows and this Taskmaster, while Daisy and Sharon will be on widow duty once they are freed from their control. Yelena, you can choose which team you want to be on.”

After everyone agreed with their assignment and Yelena chose to join Carol’s team, the group decided it was time to rest. But before she could leave, Tony called, “Ms. Belova, you should go to Dr. Cho and Dr. Palmer to see if there is any damage left from the control or anything else they left in you.”

Yelena’s eyes widened at the genuine worry Tony showed, and she nodded, saying, “Thank you, Tony. And call me Yelena.”

Carol gave him a small, proud smile, and Tony just couldn’t understand why.

It took Tony less than a week to recreate enough red dust for the mission. And a day after that, they were on their way toward a flying base in the sky.

Carol looked around the group that stood in the hall of the jet and asked, “So we all know our jobs?”

After everyone nodded their acknowledgment, Carol and Tony went to the jet’s door.

Carol turned her head to Tony and said, “We watch each other’s backs, so don’t go getting your ass kicked out there.”

Tony smirked at her and replied, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about me. I always keep my eyes on your back when you are around.”

Carol blushed a little but chuckled at his humor nonetheless. As the door opened, Carol began to glow, and Tony allowed the helmet to close around his head. With that, both of them shot out of the jet and toward the flying base in front of them.

When they were close enough, Tony heard Carol’s voice through the comms, counting back from three.

When she got to one, Tony sent a missile from his forearm launcher while Carol sent a big blast of energy to the same spot.

Like Carol warned the team on the jet, the explosion was huge and was sure to draw hostile attention.

Tony watched as the jet landed inside the base using the large hole Tony and Carol just created. They kept flying around the base, waiting for their signal.

While they were flying around, Tony asked, “Fri, give us an update on what’s going on inside.”

Friday’s voice came almost instantly after the request, “Daredevil and Iron Fist are fighting the widows sent to the jet. Agent 13 provides backup with your enhanced taser gun. Quake used the distraction to find an available vent, and Ms. Belova is on her way through the building.”

So everything was going according to Carol’s plan. That was good. Soon Daisy would release the red dust, and that would be half the job done.

Carol and Tony flew for another five minutes around the base, making sure Dreykov didn’t try to escape, when Friday’s voice informed them, “The red dust has been released throughout the entire base. The widows are starting to regain their senses. Daisy and Sharon have already begun helping a few of them. And we just received a transmission from Ms. Belova. I believe you passed the spot a few moments ago.”

As soon as Friday finished her report, both of them turned in the air toward the spot the transmission was coming from. As they got nearer, they could see through a window—bulletproof, no doubt—Yelena fighting a hooded figure in white armor.

The figure seemed to match Yelena hit for hit until they drew a sword from their belt and aimed a stab at her. Yelena barely managed to escape being stabbed in her leg by the blade, but the result was her ending up on the floor. The figure didn’t waste the opportunity and raised their sword above their head, getting ready for the killing blow.

Next to him, Carol began glowing brighter and increased her speed, breaking straight through the window and using her speed to get Yelena out of the way just before the sword came down.

Taskmaster’s sword was stuck in the metal of the floor when Tony came in and immediately sent a blast from his repulsors, sending the figure flying backward without their sword and helping Tony land smoothly in the spot.

Taskmaster stood back on their feet quickly enough and pulled a shield from behind their back. Tony tried to send another blast their way, but Taskmaster anticipated it and managed to dodge, getting closer to Tony.

Tony tried to send a punch their way, but Taskmaster anticipated it as well and dodged again. This time, they were close enough to give Tony a strong hit to the chest with the shield. Luckily, Taskmaster wasn’t a super-soldier, so their attack just sent Tony a few steps backward.

But the hit to his chest felt like a hit to his memories as well because, at that moment, all Tony could do was relive the battle in Siberia, feeling those hits from the iconic shield again and again, all across his body.

Tony could vaguely see the shield coming toward him again, but he was frozen in place, ready for another hit. But then a glowing blur flew past him and tackled the figure to the far end of the hall.

Tony felt like he was watching from outside his own body as Carol’s glowing punches destroyed the shield that hit him and began landing a few hits on Taskmaster’s body. But a few moments later, it was like Taskmaster adapted to her moves.

The white gloves of the figure suddenly had sharp claws, and Taskmaster began dodging Carol’s punches before attacking back. Tony could just watch as Carol and Taskmaster kept fighting, but with every passing moment, the hooded figure gained more advantage.

“BOSS!” Friday’s voice was loud but calm when Tony could finally hear her again through the buzzing in his ears. Friday went on, “It’s Monday, 1 PM local time. The temperature outside is above average for the season. Are you with me, Boss?”

Tony began controlling his panic attack when he started to hear the same method of grounding Jarvis used and taught Friday since 2012. He took a deep breath and replied, “Yes, baby girl. I’m sorry.”

Friday didn’t seem to care about it now. Instead, she spoke urgently, “Boss, I detect some neural transmissions from Taskmaster.”

And in that moment, everything clicked in Tony’s mind. Yelena did say Dreykov created the perfect killing machine, not trained. He immediately instructed Friday, “Fri, start emitting counter waves. We need to block the transmission as fast as possible.”

“On it, Boss,” came Friday’s instant response.

Tony watched as Taskmaster froze in place, which allowed one of the blasts Carol sent with her powers to hit its target and send Taskmaster flying backward.

“Captain Marvel, the helmet. Destroy it,” Tony called after Friday told him the blocking wouldn’t last much longer.

Carol used her speed to catch the head of the still-confused Taskmaster and yank the helmet off. Once she held the skull-shaped helmet, she crushed it between her glowing hands.

Tony raised his arm and shot a tranquilizer from his wrist toward the disfigured woman behind the mask.

Tony kept looking at her until Carol came into his line of sight, much closer than where she stood a moment before. Tony raised his helmet away from his face.

Carol had a worried look on her face as she asked gently, “Are you okay, Tony? You froze there for a moment.”

Tony let out a heavy sigh. “I know. I’m sorry. It’s just a panic attack. You don’t need...” Tony began saying.

But he was cut off when Carol said firmly, “Hey, it’s okay. I get it. The shield, the chest. It’s human, Tony. You don’t need to apologize for being traumatized.” Then she asked gently, “Are you up to the rest of it, or do you need to go back to the jet with the others?”

Tony didn’t even consider the second option and was surprised Carol even offered. He was used to his teammates scolding him for having a panic attack in the middle of a fight and ordering him to just go on with his job.

He, of course, would have done it anyway. That was the kind of man he was. But it was nice to see his leader actually caring enough to check on him. Tony smiled at her and said confidently, “Let’s move on.”

Carol eyed him for a moment before nodding with a small smile. Then Yelena joined them and said, “Thank you. She was able to match me move for move.”

Tony nodded and explained, “She had tech in her helmet that scanned the moves of fighters she saw in action and transmitted those moves to her brain directly. She was already familiar with you and me, so she was able to counter us immediately. But Carol is new around here, so she managed to get a few hits in before the tech taught Taskmaster how to counter her.”

Carol looked at the doors at the end of the hallway and said seriously, “He will be waiting on the other side of those doors.”

Yelena just hummed her agreement and went past them toward the doors.

Once they entered the room, which contained only a big desk and a large LCD screen on the wall across the table, they saw a man sitting calmly behind his desk.

The man pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose before speaking smugly, “Yelena. You surprise me. I expected Natalia to reach this far one day, but not you.”

Yelena scoffed, “Natalia is a coward. She left without a single glance back. And she turned out like you always wanted. A backstabbing underling that can’t see what is in front of her. Me, on the other hand... After all the torture you put me through to create your mind control, you didn’t think I would come to get you back if I got free of it?”

Dreykov chuckled, “Good point, Yelena. Indeed, this is an oversight I will have to consider after all of this.”

Carol raised an unimpressed eyebrow and commented flatly, “You seem quite smug for someone whose entire defenses have been taken down and is standing here alone with a vengeful woman after your blood. I will point out the warrant against you is alive or dead. So I will suggest you consider your next words carefully.”

The old Russian man smiled carelessly and replied in the same smug tone, “Do you really believe your red substance will get rid of all means of control I have over my widows?” He then turned to Yelena and smirked, “You won’t be able to kill me, Yelena. But if you kill your companions, I will forgive you.”

Yelena returned his smirk with one of her own. In one quick movement, she reached across the table, grabbed the head of the man, and smashed it against his table.

When Dreykov raised his head, his glasses were broken, and his nose was crooked and bleeding. But what was most satisfying was the shocked look on the man’s face.

Tony smirked and commented, “Did you really believe we wouldn’t think of the fact you have other means of control over a woman we brought into your office? We found all your pheromone triggers and removed them from Yelena. She is completely free of you.”

The bleeding man now looked terrified. His pale face had more to do with the fear than with the blood loss.

Quite suddenly, Dreykov’s face turned furious, and he made a sharp movement with his arm. But before either Tony or Carol could react, Yelena drew a gun and shot a bullet straight into the man’s forehead.

The gun he pulled fell to the ground a moment before the man himself did. Both landed with a loud ‘thud’ that echoed in the mostly empty room.

All three of them looked at the dead body of the man. It was finally over. Now Yelena could move on, and maybe she wasn’t the only one who should.

Present

Tony was in his suit, flying at max speed with Carol glowing next to him. They were a few minutes away from the hypothetical future landing site.

“What do you think are the chances it’s just a large group of tourists coming for some sightseeing?” Tony asked, half hoping it was the case while wholly knowing the chances were nil.

Carol laughed and said, “Always stay the optimist, love.” After a moment, she added, “I don’t know why you worry so much. Between the two of us, we can take a lot of things down.”

Tony chuckled at her comment, but to himself, he thought that if Thanos was in that ship and if he had even one stone with him, they were as good as dead. Then again, Tony could think of a lot of worse ways to die than with the woman he loved at his side.

Just as he finished that thought, a huge thing, which Tony could only assume was a spaceship, landed roughly in the water at the edge of the island a couple of minutes from their location.

Tony and Carol both stopped and floated in the air in front of what they guessed would be the passengers’ way out.

When the doors opened, the first man that came out was a tall, muscular guy with blonde hair and one eye. But still, Tony recognized him after all the time they spent together. So Tony used his speakers to call out, “Thor?”

The man raised his one eye to their direction, and a wide smile spread over his face as he called back happily, “Friend Tony! And I am afraid I do not know the glowing lady with you.”

“Thor? Why are you screaming already?” A familiar rough voice sounded from inside the ship. And a moment later, a short man with messy black hair wearing Tony’s clothes came out.

Tony couldn’t help but call in a voice full of surprise, “Bruce?!”