“That’s it, isn’t it.”

”What?”

”The activator.”

”I’m still not catching on.”

”It was the nuclear blast. It activated the magnets.”

”You think so?”

”Yes.”

I follow Fury and Hill into a room full of computers. Peter and Tony Stark are waiting inside.

”Why are they here?” I ask.

”We are the only avengers with Fridays or Karens or Jubilees.” Stark answers for me.

”Exactly,” Fury says, “You three are the only ones with secure lines that go straight to me.”

“Yes. So, you all play a bigger part in this than the other avengers.” Hill says.

”If I may say so myself,” says Stark, “I don’t think we’re very qualified for this. I mean, Parker is literally 15, Wilson is 18 and doesn’t have much experience, and I’m not really sure that’s good for whatever mission this is.” Everyone is quiet for a moment.

”Anyways... your mission is simple. In fact, it’s more of an off and on mission,” Fury says, “Stark, I’ll tell you your mission once everyone else is gone. It’s for us only. Got that?” We all nod.

“So, Parker, Wilson, your mission is to report,” Hill continues, “Tell us everything out of the ordinary that happens. Like, if someone knows something they shouldn’t, like about this place, or about you, they’re probably part of CERBERUS. Tell Karen or Jubilee to take a picture through your earpiece or contacts, and report here. I will give you keys for this lab. Oh yeah. You should wear your earpiece and Wilson, your contacts whenever possible. Is that clear?”

”Yes.” I say, while Peter nods.

”Good. Now if you two and Maria would go wait outside, I hear there’s a nice living room somewhere in this lab.” Fury says.

We exit the room. As soon as the door clicks shut, we bombard Hill with questions.

”What about the other Avengers?”

”yeah, I literally live upstairs from Steve.”

”Do they even know where we are?”

”When do we get to go home?”

Hill sighs.

“Actually, you won’t get to go home until Stark, Fury and I have checked your homes for cameras.” She says.

Peter goes pale. “But Aunt May! She’ll be so worried!” He practically shouts.

”We’ll take care of that. You two need to stay here.” She replies calmly.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

”Why, because we’re children? I’m old enough to drive! I’m an adult, too!” I say.

I know I’m being unreasonable, and that they probably have a good explanation, but I was up since 5, and haven’t eaten since dinner last night.

Hill shrugs, ignoring my outburst. ”Wilson, you’re not even old enough to drink. Besides, you haven’t even trained for a situation like this. Just stay here, and don’t get in to trouble. I’m going to get snacks, and we can watch a movie.” Hill says, and turns back towards the kitchen.

Peter and I don’t say anything for awhile. Eventually I sit on the couch and pull out my phone. But then I remember the danger, and I put it back again. Pretty soon, Hill comes back with popcorn and a few bars of chocolate.

“This place has food?” I ask, questioning how old the food might be.

”Yes, it has a cabinet that keeps food fresh. Here.” She hands me a chocolate bar.

“Thanks,” I say, “Peter, what movie do you want to watch?”

“I don’t know. You choose.” He says, walking towards the couch.

Eventually we decide on To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. Or should I say, Hill and I did. Peter said he would rather explore. After the movie Hill sends me to find Peter. She also says to stay with him until the others find us. So I wander down the same hallway I think Peter went.

Eventually I find him in a huge, dusty gym. He’s sitting up high on a metal beam that runs from one side of the gym to the other.

“Hi.” I say.

”Hi. How was the movie?” He asks.

”Pretty good. Find anything interesting?” I ask.

”Well, I found a chocolate stash in one of the many kitchens. This place is huge.” He tells me.

I look around at the windowless walls. Peter jumps down from the beam.

“What else have you done?” I wonder.

”Well, training I guess. Karen has been teaching me new moves.” He says.

“Cool. Are you excited for school to start in a few weeks?” I ask.

He laughs, and sighs dramatically.

”Dont remind me. But I guess there’s some good things. I’ll see my friends. I haven’t seen Ned for awhile.” He says.

”Ned?” I ask, confused.

”Oh yeah, you don’t know Ned! He’s my best friend.” He explains.

”Well now I know everything about him,” I joke, “does he know you’re Spider-Man?”

“Yeah. He found out last year, I climbed in through the window.” He says, smiling.

I laugh. That’s totally something Peter would do. We talk for a few minutes.

“So, how exactly do your abilities work?” He asks.

I sigh. ”It’s hard to explain. Basically, I gather energy from friction and movement, like walking. I can convert that energy into power, I guess. Like this.” I say.

I stomp the ground. Peter’s hair blows in the invisible wind. He loses balance for a second.

“I used a fraction of energy from the stomp to create a tiny shockwave.” I explain.

”That’s awesome.” He says.

Just then the others walk in.

“There you are.” Says Hill.

”Ok. Now that we’re all here, let’s take a tour. This is the fourth gym. I had forgotten about it until now.” Fury says.

For a long time, we get a tour of the base. It is truly enormous. It takes 20 minutes to walk from one end to the other, at least according to Hill. We walk towards the corridor with a bunch of hotel-like rooms. Fury has us each choose one. I end up between Hill and Stark. Fury and Peter are across the hall from us.

My room is a bit smaller than my apartment, but well-organized. It has a bed in the corner, a table with four chairs, a couch, even a small, square TV. It’s luxurious for an underground base. I get settled, and soon Hill comes in to ask if I could help make dinner. Could it be dinner time already? I check the clock, and sure enough, it’s almost seven. Hill and I make eggs and bacon. Neither of us are good cooks.

“So, where is everyone?” I ask.

”Fury and Stark are planning something for a mission, and Peter wasn’t in his room.” She says.

I sit at a table and start eating. Soon Stark and Fury wander in with Peter.

“Where were you?” I ask.

”He was listening to us. Luckily we caught him.” Stark says.

Peter rolls his eyes. We spread out over the two small tables in the room. Stark and Peter come to sit with me, while Maria and Fury sit together. We all eat. Luckily, the eggs aren’t too bad, because I burned the bacon. Everyone eats it, and no one complains, so I feel accomplished. After dinner Stark calls my name.

”Wilson, I was wondering if you would come with me. I have something for you in the workshop.” He says.

”Okay.”

We walk for a few minutes until we reach the workshop.

“Wilson, this is your new suit.” He says, gesturing to something on the table.

At first glance it looks like my old one. When I take a closer look, I see that it’s not. I gasp.

”It’s amazing!”