Head down. Apologizing. Humble and afraid all at once.
The exact recipe needed to garner his sympathy.
God. This wasn't because he didn't have his powers; he was just sympathetic toward women. He just was. He let them way more off the hook. Ugh.
Felix wasn't going to pretend he had ever been able to read Maria Hill's mind from day one. He heard this plea before. This begging. No matter which way he looked, it triggered all the sympathy in the world inside Felix. Which, maybe, he shouldn't have. Maria did trick him, or rather, feed him a white lie.
He sucked in a breath. 'You can't control the world, Felix.' He knew that. But…this woman was a spy. It was different from Shuri or Jessica or Sue or anyone else. Spies were inherently wrapped in lies.
But he was Spider-Man, wasn't he? He was supposed to help. He was supposed to be a symbol of good, no matter the mistakes.
It was a shame his Spider-Sense wasn't up to full power. Not like he could do much about it. It was either confronting her now or letting her escape to Earth 2099.
Wait a minute.
"Maria…"
"Yes?" Her head lifted and there was hope in them. Remember, super spy. She could be faking it.
Dammit.
He hoped it was her real feelings.
"Tell me, how did you plan on getting back to Earth 2099?"
The portal that Czarina wanted him to build was going to take a long time. He wasn't going to pretend he was the leading figure in physics, dimensional barriers, and string theory. Frankly, much of his knowledge was rudimentary until Czarina asked him to go back home.
"He will arrive soon."
"He?"
There was a nervous flicker. "The Big Man." Felix narrowed his eyes. He nudged Maria to go on. "He comes to this world every four months to check up."
"Check up? On what?"
"The state of New York. On his gangs. On me. Whatever he deems necessary."
Mm. Felix reflected on his first investigations and the mutterings of the Big Man. 'If the Big Man appeared in increments and left his people to do what they do, then that makes sense why I couldn't get shit on him. No end or beginning.'
"He has a secret base then."
"A portal, yes—in Chinatown in the bunker of a restaurant. His people have established a new restaurant chain. Ever heard of Genghis Connie's Too?"
Shockingly, yes. "That's a Harlem place. Small, family-sized, nothing big. I went there a couple times when I was a student." Blink, blink. "Ms. and Mr. Lin would never give their business away though. I remember them telling me they inherited it from their parents in, like, the 70s. Unless..."
From his jacket, he put on his Advanced Glasses. Herbie immediately confirmed it: the couple were alive and hard at work, having expanded their business from Harlem all the way to Chinatown. According to a local newspaper, it was a mixture of luck and a new mysterious investor. Huh.
"What's with the glasses?" Maria questioned.
He swiped them off. "It was a quick search is all."
"Look, the Big Man doesn't operate forcibly. He works with the locals. Giving investing money in exchange for information and some favours. And once he snuck one of his cyborg people in there, the Big Man could do crime while hiding behind a shield. The more the restaurant grew and spread, the stronger the Big Man's influence grew."
Hrm. It wasn't too dissimilar to how the Red Goblin operated.
"Here, in New York, you can easily take care of henchmen and his whole organized crime. It'd be easy pickings for you," Maria said.
"Easy pickings?"
"His henchmen are strong—but they're not the Red Goblin."
Such desperation, for such a stupid plan. He was a little relieved to hear it and to feel it. These were the cracks of fear. This was Felix knowing she was being for real.
"Maria, you know their tech. You know the Big Man. I take out one cyborg or all of them, he'll notice before he even comes here." And considering time moved slower on his side, that was not something Felix wanted. The Big Man could have years to prepare if he needed to. "I don't know what exactly he can do. But, Maria, I'm not bringing a fight like that here. Not now. Not with the stuff with SHIELD. New York needs peace and we need to be patient and come up with an actual plan."
"How about those items Jefferson Davis kept then? They're in SHIELD custody but that might change soon. Thor's gauntlet, the plasma gun, the grappling hook, all that, we can take it—"
"No."
Items managed by Jefferson Davis—if they went missing or if they were used at their full capacity, police and the government would know. When that happened, when lips started flapping, that invited journalists.
SHIELD did well to keep everything about Jefferson Davis under wraps. But now that SHIELD was breaking, it was best to put everything that was Jefferson Davis to bed. Not out of some heroism or because Maria was wrong. She was right. Those items were useful. And in any other circumstance, he would have taken them a long, long time ago.
The issue was Rio and Miles.
Felix couldn't hide birth certificates. He couldn't make people unsee Jefferson Davis as the Scorpion. He couldn't stop the documentations and analysis already done on the items. That was absolute—as absolute as the blood between Jefferson Davis and Miles Morales. If a journalist sniffed their nose, Miles would turn into the son of a crime boss and killer. The horror stories of families related to criminals were infamous. It was a struggle and Felix did not want to put the Morales family through that.
Maybe stealing one item was okay. Maybe. He could hack with Xina and Herbie, steal and rip some documents with Hobie, but even then…
It was a risk.
Even if it was just a one-percent chance. It was a risk too high. Everything from his wealth to his love for Rio, everything could be in jeopardy.
SHIELD was dying. The files would be relocated. The items would be shuffled into possession of the military or the United Nations. Jefferson Davis would be relocated into a humane prison. But ultimately, he was a federal criminal first before he was a superhuman. All his files, all his dealings, all the rich the Scorpion invited—they were going to be redacted.
For anyone else, Felix would have exposed those files and Jefferson Davis would be known as a criminal, villain, and deadbeat father. But…no. Just no.
Rio and Miles suffered enough.
So no. That wasn't even a thought.
"I'm Spider-Man. Trust me when I say I don't need them, Maria. You do trust me, don't you?"
That got her mask to crack some more. Maria started breathing in and out, in and out. Subtly, of course, she was a trained spy after all. "Right. Yeah. True. Sorry, this is—all this, is not what I anticipated or planned for."
"What did you expect?"
Really, what did she expect to happen in the following days? To jump dimensions via a portal?
"The portal only activates and deactivates from Alchemaxx's side. No matter, I had to wait for the Big Man. Unfortunately, the Big Man's arrival isn't fixed but there is a pattern. By my estimate, he was going to come in the following week. I planned to go to the restaurant, tell his people that I need to talk to him, and hide out in the bunker. Once I presented the Sheath to him, I'd hopefully be allowed to go home and be rewarded by Alchemaxx. After everything that has happened here, with the reconstruction, with Fury's death…I wanted to get away from it all."
Maria closed her eyes, very human. Too human to ever be faked.
"But…that was only because I got the chance to get the Sheath. And you hadn't come along now." Maria looked him in the eye. "I'd rather trust in you than Alchemaxx or the Big Man."
"I'm glad to hear that."
Maria got up. She walked over to her bedroom and returned with the black box. The seal that kept the Sheath at bay. Felix could feel a tingle in the back of his skull. Just seeing it, it evoked a feeling of despair in him.
"With Fury's death and the dead agents, it was a mess I could escape from with this."
Maria plopped back down on the couch and offered him the box. With his hands outstretched, he brought it to himself. He stared at it. Gently, he opened it—and almost immediately, he shut it. He heard voices reaching out to him. He heard a hundred voices suckling at him.
He shuddered.
'I understand you now, Gwen.'
It was terrifying. So many voices, a hivemind of billions, and even though there was fear, some part of him wanted to be consumed, if only to sate the human need to find a purpose. But that human need, Felix curbed it. This was his purpose: to be Spider-Man.
Regardless, there was no doubt about it, this was the Sheath.
Looking up, he saw Maria's nervous look. Felix smiled. "Quick question: do you still have your SHIELD connections, don't you?"
Maria blinked. "Of course."
"Help me free Gwen Stacy."
"Gwen Stacy…" Maria barely needed to think about it. "Done." Eyes went downcast. "What happened to her—it was the fault of SHIELD and Alchemaxx. Organizations I worked for. It's the least I can do."
"Thank you. Really." This time, Felix stood up and offered her a hand. His other hand cradled the black box. "Want to join my team then?"
Her eyes rose. "Your…team?"
"Not used to the power of friendship?"
Maria blinked and ended up snickering. "A little."
"I have a mansion too. Well-protected. You can move in if you want to. Ah, but later. After we free Gwen."
Maria looked at his hand and smiled. She took it.
"Looks like we've been keeping secrets from each other. I'm a little relieved that we aren't anymore."
"Maria, we're friends. Old friends. You were the person to open my eyes on what I could do." He pulled her up. "I'm glad too."
***
The parking lot was lathered in darkness and semi-filled. Felix led her to the van. From the outside it was completely unremarkable, which was the point. He opened the side door.
He gestured and Maria peeked inside. Xina looked back from the driver's seat, a hand on the wheel. Hobie was in the back, one leg up. He was sipping on a soft drink from Burger Queen.
Felix hopped inside with the box, which nearly made him snort liquid from his nose. "You got it!?" Hobie's eyes travelled up to the short-haired lady that was entering the van. "Ah, you're…Maria Hill."
Silently, Maria got in. She sat and glanced at Xina, who gave her a short nod. When she was about to reply to Hobie, she squinted. Not rudely. Just — she squinted and squinted harder.
Hobie tilted his head. "Something on my face?"
"You look…familiar."
"I've got one of those faces."
"No," Maria said slowly. "No, you don't. You really don't." She pointed. "Did you work for Alchemaxx? Hm, no…"
"Nope, never have and never will. The name's Hobie Brown," Hobie said, extending a hand. "Spider-Man of Earth 2099 in London, yeah." He grinned seeing her shock. "Didn't expect to run into someone from the neighborhood."
Maria shook his hand. "The particle accelerator explosion. You were there…"
"Ohh, so you worked for Alchemaxx." Hobie's hand snapped back into crossed arms. "Well, sister, if Felix trusts you, then I guess I'll trust you too. We gonna bring 'em down, aye?"
"Yes. That's the idea."
Suddenly, the van went red and a scanner ran down everyone. Maria blinked when a female supercomputer echoed:
"FINGERPRINT MATCHED. FACEPRINT MATCHED. IDENTITY MATCHED. MARIA HILL CONFIRMED AS ALCHEMAXX EMPLOYEE," Marilyn announced. "ACCORDING TO OFFICIAL ALCHEMAXX RECORDS, SHE IS ON VACATION FOLLOWING A TRANSFER INTO THE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION."
Maria's eyes flicked over to Xina. "From Nueva York and with a top-of-the-line AI. Who are you?"
Xina Kwan's lovely narrow features popped in with a smile. "Xina Kwan. Nice to meet you, Maria Hill."
"AND I AM MARILYN. NICE TO MEET YOU AS WELL."
Maria's eyes around, mildly suspicious and very much on guard. He calmed her down quickly. "Xina, Hobie, I—Maria needs your help. Alchemaxx put chips inside her.
"Chips?" Hobie repeated.
"Yeah, chips. Three of them, to keep track of her and kill her if need be."
"Ah." Hobie glanced over at Xina.
Xina had already turned from the front. She had her tablet out. "Show me where."
Maria pointed to her neck. Just below the jaw on the left side, then slightly lower, then tapped two fingers against her clavicle. Three points. Xina looked at each location with focused attention.
"I'm not sure how it all works though."
Xina was already pulling up something on the tablet. "I've seen Alchemaxx tracking tech before. If these are the standard trifecta array, then the kill switch is the lowest of the three. The middle one is a locator. The highest is for receiving orders." She looked up briefly. "I assume those are the three primary functions?"
Maria's eyebrows went up, marginally. "...yes."
"The locator I can disable without triggering the other two, as long as I do it in the right sequence. The order receiver I can spoof so it keeps sending the passive signal without actually transmitting to you. The kill switch—" Xina set the tablet down on her knee. "The kill switch I can isolate and physically remove once we're somewhere with the right equipment. Your place," she said to Felix, without looking at him. "It'll take an hour, maybe less."
Maria exhaled. Her shoulders didn't drop dramatically. They settled and relaxed by a millimeter or two.
"We need to use them as well," Felix added.
"Use it?" Xina repeated, confused.
"Study the signals, copy them, and maintain them. That way, even though it looks like they're removed, to Alchemaxx, they're not."
Another relaxation of the shoulders. Maria really liked that idea.
"Ohh, I see, I see. That…will take much longer, but I think I should be able to do it. With Herbie and Marilyn especially."
Felix looked at Maria. "That gives us time. The Big Man can come this week, he can do this thing, check up on you or anyone else, and he won't notice a thing." He put a hand on her shoulder. "You'll be able to relax and live without fear."
"And if they order me to do something?"
Felix squeezed assuringly. "We'll take care of it. Trust me."
The spy looked up at him. She believed him.
"Right," he said, pulling his hand back. "Drop me at Oscorp Tower."
Everyone looked at him strangely.
"Sorry?" Xina asked.
"Oscorp Tower. It's where I work."
"We have the Sheath, mate," Hobie said, eyes browed. "Let's just jet to your place and wrap it in dandelions and shit."
Felix pulled out his phone. It was a cracked mess—and it was also his Oscorp phone. Flicking it on, he showed the various messages and calls he missed. "It'll be quick, promise. Look, Oscorp's board is a mess and is going to be a mess for a while. Norman died, Harry died, Liv got arrested, and SHIELD is messed up. There's not much strong leadership left."
"Aside from you?" Hobie snickered. "You gonna be a CEO now?"
"As if. I'm an advisor type, and right now, they need a lot of advice. That's all."
Not to mention he had to keep up appearances. Norman died and from the messages he received, the cops did want to question him. Felix disappearing shortly after his death was not a good look. Fortunately, he had these guys to vouch for alibis. Especially Maria.
After a bit more convincing from Felix, the van started driving to Oscorp Tower. Xina wasn't at the front, she was letting Marilyn do the driving while she scanned and discussed with Hobie on how to remove the chips. The chips were an older model from Xina's perspective, but still well-crafted and still used today.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it, as they say.
Soon, the van came to a stop. Felix got out alone. Hobie waved at him with a smile. Maria looked tense.
"Don't worry," Felix told Maria, "they'll take care of you."
Hobie just had to remark, "We don't bite, trust."
Maria smiled softly. "I believe you."
The van doors closed and Felix turned to face the tower. Oscorp Tower at night was its own kind of strange. He approached it with heavy feet.
The automatic doors slid open and a chill ran down his spine.
Suddenly, Felix was reminded of the first day he came here. Back then, it was a busy, sunny tower of potential and hope.
Now…it was empty.
Now, he stood there alone. No redhead secretary waiting behind a desk near the elevators. No Reed Richards. No co-workers. No Dr. Olivia Octavius. No powers.
Just him. Just Felix.
Looking around brought the nausea of a building that was simply too empty for itself. The vast lobby was echo-quiet in a way that didn't match the scale of the architecture, the lights running full because the lights always ran full but finding nothing to illuminate except polished floors and the security desk. Was this the silence of a headquarters whose chief executive had recently died publicly? Perhaps. Or perhaps it was the sign of changing times.
"Felix? Felix!"
He turned and saw Jessica Jones running. The automatic doors hadn't been sealed so he walked right in, but there was still security? She jogged and the relief on her face was immediate.
"Good to see you!" Jessica was tempted to hug him. Actually, she fell into those temptations, despite being in her security suit. "Bastard. Feels like it's been forever, heh."
"Good to see you too, Jessica."
Jessica looked him over with a frank assessment. "You look…terrible."
He chuckled and got going. "Thank you."
"Guess you gotta go, huh?"
"Yep. The board has been waiting for me?"
"Yesterday, today, last week, yeah. Everyone has been asking about you since Norman died." She fell into step beside him, escorting him whether he wanted it or not. "They're at the top floor. All of them."
The lobby was empty. The reception was empty. The usual mid-evening maintenance crew — absent. Felix looked at the desk, the one close to the elevator bank, where Czarina worked.
Except as he encroached there, his eyes went wide.
'I don't believe it…'
Positioned in front of the elevator with the posture of a guard was a woman he did not expect to be here of all places. She was too good for this, was Felix's first thought. Tall and strong, in a uniform that was not Oscorp security and not NYPD and not anything that belonged to a private building's lobby.
"Captain?"
The star. The blue. The reinforced panelling along the arms and chest that the news footage and documentaries had shown in the light of a dozen different situations. A couple bandages were taped to her face and he could see the stiff limp of her left arm. It was broken.
But Samantha Wilson hid her weakness well—until she saw him. After seeing Felix, she went from stoic guard to a brightened young lady.
Felix's mind produced a single, very reasonable question: 'Why is Captain America acting as a guard for Oscorp of all places?'
The question didn't make it out of his head because Samantha Wilson crossed the lobby in three strides and wrapped both arms around him. Felix caught the woman and hugged her back.
She was careful of her bandaged arm. She was careful of him too, actually. It was the closest thing to a crushing embrace she could give without actually crushing a person.
"Felix." Samantha pulled back and looked at him. A full, unreserved smile greeted Felix, rearranging her whole face and surprised to be there. The soldier was not there. This was a friend. "I'm so glad you're okay," she said.
"I should be saying that to you."
Felix smiled and brought her in for a hug of his own. Samantha was surprised, eyes widening, and quickly melted into it.
Why was Captain America here? Who cares? Felix was glad to see she was alive and okay. That her devastating battle with the Hulk hadn't changed the strong woman she was.