chapter fifty
the black cat comes home

    "BLOODY HELL, we're going to die!"

    Even a gigantic, lightning-storm monster could not stop Flash and his horrible faux British accent. He had his phone high above his head, craning his neck to try and film the disaster around them. The double decker shook at each crash of thunder━Nina's classmates screamed and clung onto their seats and the second storey barrier. Her heart was pounding━any scream she had was stuck in the back of her throat as the wind picked up; it billowed against her clothes and pulled her hair from the scrunchie she had used to tie it up. She watched the sunflower fabric hair-tie blow away in the gale. Water sprayed up from the Thames; hitting the bricks of the Tower Bridge━the gale wailed and tunnelled; above them, a grey vortex of storm clouds churned and twisted into a furious funnel.

    Her hands shook, horrified as a pair of ghastly, hollow eyes peered back down at her from the skeletal face of Mysterious fabricated nightmare. The monster howled and disappeared back inside the depths of the clouds.

    When Mr. Harrington resurfaced from down below, Mr. Dell scrambled to the front, "What did the bus driver say?!"

    Mr. Harrington flung his hands up, "Bus driver's gone!"

    "WHAT?!" exclaimed the students.

    Harrington tried to calm them down, but his frantic stance told them that he was just as━if not more━scared as them. "It's okay!" he cried over the loud wind. "Mr. Dell and I have it under control!"

    "Oh, no, no, no, no━!" Mr. Dell shook his head, stepping away from the group of them. "Don't you drag me into this, Roger!"

    Mr. Harrington snapped, "I'm doing my best, Julius!"

    Nina gaped as an entire geyser of water erupted from the Thames behind Mr. Harrington. Dell screamed with terror, "THE WITCHES ARE BACK!"

    Harrington noticed. His face dropped. He screamed as well: "OH, MY GOD━GET OFF THE BUS━!"

    They all pushed and shoved, screaming in their effort to race down the single aisle stairwell that took them back down. Above, water crashed down onto them. It rocked the bus and gusted upwards against the tarmac━the water twisted with a mind of its own, writhing and jetting in different directions like coordinated blasts. Lightning continued to strike and thunder rattled Nina's bones. She was one of the last people off the top of the bus, dragging Jason in front of her who had been stuck in the rush. She pushed him towards the stairwell and together, they helped each other out of the bus and towards their teachers and friends just as the wind picked up. Jason screamed for her to duck and she listened, clutching onto him as lightning struck the tower behind them━rubble cascaded down; breaking apart just inches behind them and showering them in tarmac and stone. The rest of them screamed when the wind tunnelled so fast and so strong, it lifted their tour bus right off its wheels; it bent and it twisted and then it shot upwards into the sky━

    BOOM━!

    It exploded into a billowing cloud of fire━the metal casing melted and sparked; it fuelled the monsters power, turning the grey storm clouds into an apocalyptic burning orange and red.

    "WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN TO US!?" Mr. Harrington cried out in exasperated misery.

    "IT'S THE WITCHES, MAN!" answered Mr. Dell. "THEY'VE CURSED YOU!"

    Lightning struck the bridge once more. People screamed━they screamed. Fire sparked and burst upwards. Around the Tower Bridge, more and more funnels of storm clouds twisted upwards in raging tornadoes, like this monster had planted its feet and legs around them━trapping them underneath.

    Mr. Harrington pushed them down the road. They kept in groups, holding onto each other in order to not get lost within the growing chaos as they desperately tried to get off the bridge. Embers and smoke wafted around them, burning their lungs mixed with the bitter taste of oncoming rain. Nina held on tight to her Spider Plush, surprisingly somehow having not lost it at all in the terror. They were getting close to the exit now, and when Nina saw Flash stop just at the gate, holing up his phone to try and record to beast she shouted at him, furious.

    "FLASH!" she scolded, shoving him along. "NOT NOW!"

    Mr. Dell pushed them both forwards, pointing to Mr. Harrington leading their group with his London tourist sights brochure waving above his head, "Follow that cursed hand!"

    Their feet pounded on cobblestone paths. Ned stumbled as he tried to keep up with Betty who was yanking him along by his hand with a vice grip. He glanced upwards at the monster that continued to grow in size and whimpered, "I━It's not real! It's not real━!"

    "It looks pretty real to me!" snapped MJ, her hair flying wild around her face.

    They slowed for a moment to gaze outwards at the beast now that they were free from the bridge. Even Nina's heart thundered painfully in terror despite the fact that she knew it was all a well-organised trick. This monster was more than a storm. Clouds hovered to form a hollowed face of a skull, they travelled downwards to arms that were armoured with lumps of rock and molten lava━beneath the smoke, the beast coursed with fire; Mysterio had fabricated a living and breathing volcanic eruption. And while the Elemental was fake, the damage it razed to the streets and bridges around the Thames was very much real.

    Mr. Dell trembled in his shoes, "Earth, wind, fire, water ..." he gasped with sudden horror. "Oh, no! They joined forces like the Power Rangers!"

    Harrington gritted his teeth, "You're thinking of Voltron."

    "Who?"

    "Voltron! You're thinking of Voltron!"

    Brad caught sight of something within the smoke━a distant glow of green. His face lit up, "Hey, look!" he pointed outwards, beaming with relief, "It's Mysterio!"

    Their classmates forgot all about their imminent danger and flocked to the edge of the street, gasping and cheering out as a trail of green smoke shot straight towards the monster. They leapt up, waving their hands in victory when Mysterio ducked underneath the monster's flailing arm and jetted a column of magical power right into its left eye socket.

    But this dreadful realisation hit Michelle Jones and she turned to her two friends within the crowd, "Wait━" she whispered frantically, "━if Mysterio knows we know..."

    Ned understood. His eyes widened, "Then we're in danger."

    "Yeah," nodded MJ. She nodded to their classmates, "and so are they. We should go━"

    Nina didn't need to be told twice. She, MJ and Ned took off. Betty gasped as she was dragged along, but did not argue. They continued their desperate sprint towards safety away from their class and teachers. Nina thought that they had managed to separate themselves entirely until she heard a strangled: "Hey! Wait for me!"

    She huffed a frustrated breath, "Flash!" she grumbled but she reached back and snatched his jacket, tugging him along.

    The group of them continued to run━they had no idea where they were going to go, but they didn't stop. Nina kept glancing back, trying to see what was happening━Mysterio's trick seemed to be occupied with putting on a well-organised show for now, but she was sure it wouldn't be long before it might just turn down onto them. She glanced upwards, searching for another superhero━her superhero, praying that he would make it here in time.

     Just when she was about to give up━to breath a cry and think that perhaps Mysterio had won against Peter Parker, there she noticed a slight blink of red within the grey. Something was pummelling straight down high above the storm. It shot straight through━so small if she were to blink, she might have not even seen it.

    And then something shot out from the spec in the sky; a white, billowing parachute in the shape of a spider.

    Nina stopped to chuckle━she let out a short, crazed laugh. She watched Spider-Man dive straight down into the storm clouds; a new suit of red and black disappeared within the monster's back and she grinned.

    "Nina, what are you doing?!" Betty cried out and grabbed her hand as well to keep her moving. For once, Flash really did live up to his name, sprinting on past the rest of them down the road they took, screaming: "SEE YOU LATER, SUCKERS! IT'S EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF!"

    "FLASH!" they all shouted angrily.

*ೃ༄

    THE EXPLOSION━an expanding pulse of pure yellow energy and lightning struck Peter right off his feet. He groaned as he landed, painfully, on the concrete floor of the OSCORP energy grid. He rolled and he tumbled, his entire body feeling as if on fire as it jolted and sparked with static electricity all the way down his limbs. He hit the rubble of the nearby shattered wall and fell face-forward onto the ground. He hefted a long, exhausted sigh, eyes clenched behind his mask. Max was a little ways away━and light dimmed in and out as Electro gathered himself similar; a lightbulb that only gained more and more energy until it sparked once again. Peter groaned, trying to push himself back up onto his feet. Why couldn't this guy just give up?

    "Just shake it off..." Spider-Man muttered to himself. "Yeah, man, it's just your bones ... and your muscles ... and your organs ..."

    He shook his head, blinking away the blur of his vision as he glanced upwards━he could hear the electricity around him, humming along a tune like an annoying song in the back of his mind. Until it jolted in a fierce spiral of yellow up the grid towers, vibrating with such control that it created a sound like someone strumming a loud, pulsing chord on an electric guitar.

    "Oh, boy..."

    Spider-Man glanced around. Max was nowhere to be seen. Another chord blared from his left, and the vines of yellow electricity darted from grid tower to grid tower, lighting the island up as if he was watching his own, personal concert of ...

    He listened to the song and he groaned, slamming his head back down as he recognised the beat of Itsy Bitsy Spider━

    Peter cried out as he was suddenly shoved to the side in a glare of gold. Max had become so powerful that he was merely a ghost━a slithering trail of yellow which followed an invisible man. He darted━back and forth━here to there━and Spider-Man was surrounded by the worst concert of his life.

    "I hate this song!" he told Max as he flew backwards from another hit. He landed in a ditch of his own making. "Seriously?" Spider-Man struggled onto his feet, trying to follow the sound that bounced in a chaotic pattern━upwards, downwards, left to right, diagonally━ "You couldn't have picked, I don't know━ARGH━!"

    Peter was slammed right up against one of the grids. He was carried with the next riff and he clenched his jaw━BAM!━Itsy━POW!━Bitsy━WHAM━Spider! Came each jarring hit. He slid down the last one, crumpling to a heap and still managing to quip, "I have a great theme song, you know ... let's play that. Spider-Man, Spider-Man━"

    Electro didn't like that. Spider-Man had no time to react when the entire grid lit up once more and a mountain of electricity lifted Peter upwards and he spun, wild and spiralling, outwards into the night air. He was thankful for the rubber padding of his suit, Nina's web shooters and his enhanced capabilities, otherwise he knew he would have been fried spider-meat by now. He cried out as he fell back down━

    "WHOAAAA━" he let out again as Max kicked him upwards like a football. He passed through a line of two grid towers, and couldn't help but think: score! as he spun back down to the ground.

    Peter twisted his body and tried to swing his way out of this one. But as soon as his web jetted out and attached itself to the nearest tower, Max's own webs of yellow lightning latched onto Peter's wrists and ankles━before he knew it, he was suspended upwards in the centre of the building and there, Max was.

    Electro grinned━he knew he had Spider-Man finally within his grasp. Peter clenched his jaw, doing his best not to cry out as the pulse grew and grew. He felt it envelop him, seeing through his suit and making him smell smoke━a horrible, burning smell that he quickly realised was actually him. All around, OSCORP's power grid spasmed in blinding lights.

    "Spider-Man," said Electro in a voice that crunched like gravel underfoot, "bet you never saw this coming."

    Peter would have said something very intelligent, but he has a feeling his vocal cords were fried.

    That was when a loud sound broke through━a sudden crash like something had barrelled through brick and stone. Neither Spider-Man nor Max had time to see what it was. In just the blink of an eye, Max jerked sideways as the bonnet of a police car rammed right into him at full speed.

    Electro flew outwards. His hold on Spider-Man broke and Peter Parker hit the ground once again, dazed and confused. There was a loud clang! as Electro struck a tower and fell onto a road of pipes that led straight to the centre generator. He did not get up.

    The vehicle skidded to a stop and someone kicked open the driver seat door. Out of the police car came the flustered state of Nina Hart, scrambling forwards to stare at what she had done. She took a deep breath, her heart pounding. "I just hit Electro," she whispered to herself. Nina flicked her hair off her face and suddenly, she was quite triumphant. "I just hit Electro with a police car!" she pointed a finger across the grid towers to where Max had landed. "Yeah! Bet you didn't see that coming, huh?!"

    Then she turned to where Peter was struggling to get back onto his feet and all that satisfaction turned into a white hot breath of anger. "You!" Nina slammed the car door closed. She pointed at Spider-Man who watched her march up to him, horrified. "Really?! You web me to a car━are you serious?!"

    Peter managed to get onto his feet, shocked to a silence. He held back a pained gasp when his knees buckled, swaying on his feet. He still smelt the horrible smell of burnt arm hair and smouldering rubber. Nina's boots pounded a furious storm, dressed still in her coat and winter dress, though her stockings were ripped at the knees. "You are impossible!" she told Peter Parker. "You know that?!"

    Spider-Man shook his head. His heart was beginning to pulse a frantic pace, and it wasn't from the horrific electric shock. "No━" he tried to tell her, his voice hoarse, "━you shouldn't be here..."

    He tugged her wrist back towards him, the padding of his suit keeping her safe from the energy that still played tennis in his limbs. Nina didn't listen, "You webbed me to the car! Are you serious right now?"

    Peter shook his head. He waved his hands at her━he glanced backwards at where Max had fallen, his spider-sense making him jump at every sound around them━around her. This was the calm before a sudden storm; a sudden, very dangerous storm. If Electro woke up ... Peter had to get Nina far away from here before that happened. "No, no, listen to me━"

    "I know how to help you!" Nina tugged her hand away and gestured to him angrily. Peter hunched up, wanting to shout. He realised, right now, that he's never been more scared━not for himself, but for her. He felt it, he heard it━every change in the wind, every sound of bricks falling, every groan of a loose tower; her boots scuffing on the floor, the sirens in the distance ... he heard, he felt, he was overwhelmed by it all. He has never been more alert for danger in his life.

    He ushered her further away from where he knew Electro was, still continuously looking over his shoulder with his heart in his throat. He then turned to face her, furious himself, "What are you doing here━?!"

    "━I━I know the grid specs━!" argued Nina, matching his tone.

    Peter flung up his hands━he couldn't stop himself. Even the touch of the ground under his feet made him so hyper-sensitive that he almost grabbed Nina and webbed them out of here. He could feel it. He could feel this danger he couldn't describe. But his spider-sense told him. It told him, "━You need to get out of here━!"

    "━I can reset the system━!"

    "No, no, no, Nina━Nina━!" Peter grabbed her by the shoulders, holding her in place as he forced her to meet his gaze. He shook her, desperate to get her to understand━for her to listen to him, just this once. "You can't be here right now," he told her, very serious. "I'm not messing around. You can't be here right now, this is insane!"

    She shook her head, "No, Peter━"

    Peter held her tight. Tighter than he should━his fingertips would leave bruises on her arms. "Nina━!" He hung his head, frustrated, "━you need to listen to me━"

     "No!" she cut him off again, stubborn. Peter looked up, and his grip was trembling. "No, Peter, for once━will you just listen to me?" Their pace slowed down. Nina leaned in close, her own heart pounding high in her throat. "I am not leaving, all right? I am not leaving you. You made your choice, this is mine, okay? My choice. I won't leave you." Her voice grew soft, meeting those unblinking lenses and knowing exactly what colour those eyes were behind it; and exactly how they gazed upon her now in his hitched silence. "I made that promise, too: Where you go, I go." Nina's brows lifted, forgetting everything that was happening around him to make sure that he listened━that for once, he understood her. She nodded, reassuring━to tell him that it was going to be okay; that she will be okay. "Okay?"

    She could see him think it through━she watched him relent and shake his head, but she knew she had gotten through to him. He sighed. He set his head against hers for a brief moment before nodding, "All right. All right. Fine."

    "Okay," Nina took hold of his wrist as he stood in front of her, continuing to usher her back and away from where they could see Electro's body lie there, still━but not for much longer. "Okay, how do we stop him?"

    "Okay," Peter took a deep breath, "so he's electric. He━he's like a battery." She hummed. "So, what happens if you overcharge a battery?"

    Nina quickly understood where he was going, "It explodes."

    "Right."

    "So, we use his power against him." Nina squeezed his wrist. "Perfect."

    Spider-Man gestured to the destruction in front of them. "I think I can reconnect the power lines, but what I need you to do━" he turned around and rushed her along at a faster pace towards the centre building of the power grid. "I need you to reset the system." He stopped her right before the doors. Inside was dark and abandoned ... whoever had worked in there tonight were long gone, or worse yet, dead. "Nina," he took hold of her wrist and she met his gaze. "When I say, you turn that power on." He pointed his finger at her, severe and stern. She knew there was no time to waste. "You turn it on, no matter what."

    Realising what that meant, Nina frowned and quickly tugged him back before he would leave, "Peter..."

    He held up his finger again, "No matter what." It wasn't a suggestion, it was an order. Nina pursed her lips. She swallowed the lump in her throat, but she nodded━she promised him she would do what he said, and she meant it.

    She held on for a second longer to make sure she told him: "I Love you."

    Her hairs stood on end. She could feel her ironed waves lift up off her shoulders. Peter eyed it before glancing over his shoulder. The lights around the grid flickered. Electro had woken up. Spider-Man spun back to her, "I love you, too━now, go. Go!"

    Nina gave him one final glance before swivelling on her heel and running towards the control building doors.

*ೃ༄

    THEY CONTINUED to run. Amongst the screams and the exploding pillars of destruction, Nina could hear Flash's breathless, exuberant retelling on his TikTok live, and she suddenly wished the monster would snatch her up just so she didn't have to listen to him anymore. She kept glancing back━as if thing she'd be able to see Peter; check on him. But after he disappeared within the projection, she knew she won't see him for a long time. All she could do was judge by what was happening━she had gotten very good at it. Nina had learnt to sit on the edge of her seat to watch the news, or to climb out onto her fire escape━she had learnt to consistently be on her phone, refreshing news articles and videos every few seconds. That was what it was like to know Spider-Man.

    "Look!" shouted MJ in shock. She pointed upwards to the Tower Bridge. The others turned. Their jaws slacked as they watched Mysterio's fable unravel right before their eyes. The Elemental's hand that was falling down onto the nearby road dematerialised━the smoke dissipated, the rocks crumbled away and the fire within it extinguished ... he was eaten away bit by bit by bright, blue fabricated holograms━the inner workings and framework of Mysterio's lie were being exposed at the pull of a stage curtain by Spider-Man's hand.

    And then it all fell away. The monster disappeared into thin air and Flash yelled it surprise. In its place were hundreds━hundreds━of jet-powered, sleek white drones and the same projector equipment Nina had found. They hovered over and within the water of the Thames like a gigantic, explosive hive of furious bees. The moment of surprise left a haunting silence over the river shore before━like the switch of a light━the screams started up again.

    "There he is!" whispered Ned to MJ and Nina━he noticed a figure falling from the hive of drones; Spider-Man tumbled from the top of the Tower Bridge at the mighty shove of one of the drones━he hit the deserted bridge road, denting the handrail in the process.

    But Nina's attention was fixed on something else. "Oh, no..." she murmured.

    "Oh, no?" let out Betty, confused and startled. She spun to Nina. "Oh, no what?"

    She pointed a shaky arm out in front of her and a few inches above. Her friends' gazes followed until they all landed on the single, white drone that buzzed angrily a few feet away━its tunnelling blasters, like beady eyes, were fixed right onto their group. Their knees quivered.

    "Oh, no," agreed MJ.

    "Go━" Nina started to shove them onwards. "Go, go, go━GO━!"

    They cried out in terror as the pavement behind them exploded upwards in a burst of cobblestone. The laser blast ricocheted━Nina saw darts of bright yellow shots race past her. Like Storm Trooper gunshots━and she realised that never again will she ever declare that she wanted to be inside the Star Wars movies.

    "OH, MY GOD━!" yelled Flash, his voice breaking off in a strangled squeak. "THE MONSTER WAS FULL OF DRONES! IT'S CRAZY! THE DRONES ARE AFTER US! IT'S CRAZY━! WAIT, GUYS! I HAVE LIKE OVER A MILLION VIEWS THIS IS SO COOL!"

    "YEAH BECAUSE WE'RE ABOUT TO DIE!" screeched MJ, pushing him along.

    "MAKE SURE YOU FOLLOW ME!" Flash told his phone, completely forgetting about the drone right on their tail. "IF I SURVIVE THIS THAT WOULD BE GREAT! WE CAN GET FROM TWO THOUSAND TO THREE THOUSAND!"

    "HOW DO YOU EVEN HAVE TWO THOUSAND FOLLOWERS?!" cried out Nina incredulously. She then screamed when they duck sideways. She felt the burn on her cheek from how close the laser was.

    They dived under a bridge and the drone followed. Flash pointed out a side road and they sprinted down it, only to find themselves met with a dead end. MJ threw her hands up, "FLASH!"

    He spun to her, "How was I supposed to know━?!"

    Nina cursed and tried to search for another way out. But London wasn't New York, she quickly learnt. Its narrow side streets were built very differently. The only way out, was exactly the way they came in, and they never had the chance to make a run for it━their breaths all hitched when they heard it: the slight buzzing hum of one of Mysterio's drones.

    The drone slowly turned into the alleyway. The school friends all huddled together, cornered in. The machine came to a stop, blocking the exit. It locked its stare onto them, before its guns spun and they fixed their aim right onto them. They started to glow red as it charged up enough ammunition━and Nina knew they were dead. Flash's hands shook as he held up his camera, even now.

    "Betty hold me!" squealed Ned and threw his head into his girlfriend's shoulder.

    Nina was still trying to think of a way to get them out of this. She managed to pick up a loose piece of debris and chucked it at the drone. It knocked it off course for a moment. But it didn't do much damage━or any, at all.

    The drone turned onto her━and as if it was very much capable of holding a vendetta, it re-spun its weapons right onto her━

    SMACK━!

    The friends all jumped. A outdoor, folded chair suddenly slammed down onto the top of the drone with such force it struck the ground. It flung back up but then the chair━like someone was swinging a baseball bat━hit it right to the brick walls of the building to their left. It sparked and groaned when one of its guns came askew and dented. Then, as it struggled to regain its flight, there was a flash of a platinum blonde ponytail and a snug, black suit. The figure leapt up and slammed her foot into the centre of the drone. This time, it hit the wall and crashed onto the ground ... and it did not get back up. The red light slowly died out.

    The figure landed. Nina's eyes widened. She felt her shoulders rise as the steel gaze of Felicia Hardy━the Black Cat━turned to them behind the slender tilt of her mask. They narrowed onto Nina and she was breathless━she didn't know what to say. For a moment, she almost didn't believe this was real.

    But then the Black Cat tilted her head at Nina, "A rock?" she asked her, incredulous. "Seriously?"

    "Who the hell are you?!" Betty demanded, her heart pacing and her cheeks pale.

    "Dude, she's like the new Black Widow or something," muttered Flash.

    "No," grumbled MJ, shooting him a glare. "That's the Black Cat."

    "Who?"

    "You came," Nina finally managed to find her voice, still locked in the gaze of her once best friend.

    Felicia pursed her lips, "Yeah, I did." She said. Then she nodded to the street outside, "Come on!"

    "Where are we going?!" asked Flash.

    "Somewhere safe!" snapped the Black Cat. "Where do you think we're going?!"

    Nina had no time to ask questions━to say anything. Or even think what the right thing was to say. She couldn't find the time to say thank you, or stop to think whether she should be grateful. There was no time to talk about what was said and what wasn't said━to ask what this meant ... to ask whether this meant that Felicia was coming back; whether she was her friend again. The Black Cat took the group of them back out into the chaos. And it even when running for their lives, some people stopped to point at this strange, new vigilante that they had never seen before. Flash helped them out, pointing at Felicia and shouting: "THAT'S THE BLACK CAT!"

    MJ kept glancing around, checking for any more of the deadly drones Mysterio must have sent to kill them. They were a good way away from the bridge, now. Nina briefly turned, trying to see if she could spot a figure of red and black amongst the swarm━but she didn't.

    They made it to an open stretch of cobblestone roads, passing an open cafe shot by some hedges. The chef was running for his life, still with his apron tied around his waist.

    The group of them turned the corner, their feet aching and their chests heaving. Nina was getting a stitch to her side, but she didn't stop, stumbling to keep up with Felicia who tried to lead them all somewhere safe. Though she suddenly skidded to a stop. They all rammed into each other behind her━and the Black Cat cursed when they almost stumbled on top of each other to the ground.

    Nina quickly learnt why she had stopped and she gaped, in awe at the large jet that had been landed right in the centre of the road. The compartments of its wings folded back in and its nose edged forwards until its wheels finally stopped. People ran around it as if this was just a normal part of their every day lives. The door opened and a stairwell dropped out onto the stone. Nina's confusion lifted to relief when she saw a stout man in a dark suit rush down. He huffed and puffed, shuffling across the road towards them.

    "Happy!" cried out Ned in delight. Betty turned to him, confused.

    Mr. Stark's old Head of Security skidded to a stop by their group. Nina grinned. Black Cat made a face, "Who are you?"

    "Who the hell are you?" Happy only just rebutted at her. Then he quickly waved the matter away, "Doesn't matter. I gotta get you guys out of here! Get on the jet━!"

    "Who are you?!" MJ asked Felicia's question again.

    "I work with Spider-Man, okay?" said Happy, urgent. He gestured back to the plane. "You gotta get on that jet━"

     Flash's eyes widened. His jaw dropped. "You work for Spider-Man?!" his voice squeaked a few octaves higher in his amazement.

    Happy huffed. His desperation to get them on the jet mattered little anymore as soon as Flash spoke. He pressed his hands together and frustratingly stated: "No. I work with Spider-Man, not for Spider-Man━!"

     KA━BOOM!

    They turned around. Happy's private jet had combusted into a complete firestorm of fuel and exploding velvet seats. He stood there for a moment, utterly dumbstruck on his feet. Nina wasn't surprised at this point━it was their sort of annoying luck that these things always happened.

     Happy gulped. He took a deep breath. "Okay!" he pointed down the road. "New plan! New plan━Into the Tower!"

    "What?!"

    "Just go━!" Nina pushed Betty along and they took off running yet again. They had been running so much, she was sure her feet were about to fall off, but they all━even the Black Cat━followed Happy down into the pathways tunnelled by medieval stone brick walls.

    The Tower of London soon loomed over them. A fortress that wrapped around another fortress━years and years of history of blood, gore and violence. They said ghosts wandered these halls━royal ghosts, vengeful ghouls and childish spirits; none of them even thought about any of those freakish tales for a moment as they ran past the security and in through the front gate.

    As they ran, Happy was starting to run out of breath. But he managed to reach a hand out, gesturing for Nina to make her way over. "Nina! Nina!" he heaved her name and she frowned. Anxious, she glanced around for any more of Mysterio's deadly drones before she skidded into pace beside him. "I have to━" Happy took a deep breath, "━I need to give you━"

    He shoved his hand into his blazer pocket as he ran, and it was a ridiculous, awkward sight. The Head of Security for Stark Industries managed to grip what he was carrying━he puffed: "Spider-Man wanted to give this to you━" another deep breath, "━well, wanted me to give this to you incase he wouldn't make it━" as soon as he saw the horrified look on her face, he quickly fixed his words up, "━He'll make it! He'll make it. It's all good. It's all fine. Here."

    He placed a little ornate round tin in her hand━his palms were sweaty and it made her nose turn up. But then she started to notice the beautiful, intricate designs on the tin━she slowed down, finding herself unscrewing it and wanting to open it up. "This is from Spider-Man?" she asked softly, forgetting all about everything that was happening and instead feeling nothing more than this warm, fluttering swell in her chest━right where her heart was.

    Overhearing the conversation, Betty made a face, "How many superheroes are you friends with?" she pointed to Black Cat to prove her point.

    Nina didn't know how to answer that question. "Uh...?"

     A laser struck the ground right in front of her feet, turning the stone black with ash. She jumped with a squeal and took the message to break out into a desperate run yet again. They weren't alone, now. Holding onto Peter's present tight in her palm and with her plush under her arm, she ducked low to avoid the second blast. Three E.D.I.T.H. drones under Mysterio's command had zeroed in on the group of them and followed at a vicious dive into the narrow entrance of the Tower of London━they disappeared in a brief tunnel of darkness between two eleventh century towers and reappeared out inside in the courtyard.

    They screamed when they only just missed the ricocheted fire. Felicia pulled Nina along in a vice tight grip, her claws scratching her shirt sleeve. She stared at her, breathless for a moment, lost in a flood of memory━almost as if nothing had happened, until she remembered just as quickly all that had.

    "Quick!" Happy shouted over their cries. "Into the Crown Jewels vault!"

     They didn't argue, following him with their continuous screams of terror. The drones followed them in the courtyard, and alongside the pointed blasts of their high-concentrated fire was the gunshots of the Royal Guard that had raced from their stations to provide cover. Their bullets struck harmlessly off the drones' shell. One bullet managed to strike the joint of one drone's gun and the machine short-circuited, flying off-course and ramming itself into another━they both hit the stone walls.

    "GO!" yelled Happy. They descended into dim lighting━their feet pounding as they wrapped round and around on wooden flooring past old walls filled with replicas of old, medieval shields and suits of armour. One single drone was still on their tails, and no matter how many twists and turns they made, it followed without trouble. "GO!"

    Nina had never thought this would be how she would visit the Tower of London━but she supposed she should know by now that things were always unexpected.

    "Come on!" Happy led them through the maze of the museum, knowing the passageways surprisingly well. "Into the vault! The walls are eight-feet thick! Go into the vault!"

    They skidded to a stop as the room widened to a showcase of historical, royal and medieval artefacts kept behind glass display cabinets. Swords, maces, armour and more shields━Twelfth century jousting armour and Tudor ceremonial, jewelled scabbards were just a blur past Nina's eyes as she followed Happy's order. She and her friends all raced the way he pointed, through the display and onwards to the famous vault fixed in━and guarded━within the old Tower of London barracks.

     Glass shattered over their heads as the drone gained speed. They all ducked, shouting profanities and crying out desperate pleas of mercy. Glass casings fractured and exploded only just paces behind their shadows.

    "TAKE COVER!"

    They didn't need to be told twice. Nina gasped and ducked to her left. She saw MJ pull Felicia to the right and the two of them hid themselves in the shadow of a late medieval tapestry. Betty grasped Ned's hand in a numbing grip from where they stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the alcove━just hidden away from the light glaring through the window. Flash had taken cover with Happy. He held up a trembling grip of his phone━

    Happy smacked it down, "Get that thing out━!" he scolded in a whisper.

    Nina's back was cool against the display case of a remaining suit of armour. Its large, broad figure kept her hidden from the drone's view in its steel shadow━but chills crawled up her spine in the breathless silence that followed. She could see it slowly travel through the centre aisle, following its reflection with a hitched breath and a frantic eye.

    As it grew nearer, Nina hunched up━trying to make herself as small as possible. It was then that her eyes landed on the wall opposite. There, hung an entire collection of old, rusted and heavy weapons. One, a large, spiked mace...

    This crazy, stupid━but very brave━idea formed in her head.

    I'm going to die, Nina said to herself━she nodded, trying to muster up enough courage. The drone was getting closer and closer━she could hear it turn in its stalking flight right behind her. Nina chewed her bottom lip and carefully reached her hands outwards.

    Happy noticed what she was doing. He shook his head wildly, "No!" he mouthed. He swiped his pointed finger across his neck. She nodded, eager━starting to get very proud of this idea. He shook his head yet again, NO, he mouthed dramatically. Every facial expression he pulled told her that this was more than a crazy, stupid idea━it was something insane.

    Nina's hands grasped around the handle of the old, iron mace.

    Slowly and carefully, she pulled it up and off its display hook━

    The sudden weight almost made her trip. Everyone who watched her visibly winced. Flash had to muffle his gasp with his hands. Nina's feet scuffed on the floor━they twisted inwards and she tugged with all her might━

    The mace stopped its fall, merely inches from hitting the ground. Nina hefted out a long breath. She gritted her teeth and pulled it upwards and over her shoulder.

    Across the room, she met the Black Cat's gaze who had slyly peered out from the shadows. They shared a silent understanding. Felicia nodded, knowing exactly what Nina's plan was going to be.

    She gestured quickly to MJ and they grabbed an old spear from the wall. Silent and delicate, they held it up towards the nearby suit of armour. The drone slowly passed Nina's hiding spot━with a heave, the two of them pushed the suit of armour outwards. It collapsed on the ground. Mysterio attacked.

    The drone fired a volley of bullets at the poor suit of armour, but the distraction was exactly what Nina needed. She leapt out into the aisle. She yelled out in fury and slammed the mace right down onto the drone's head. It tilted sideways. One gun was out of action, but the other was still firing wildly━and firing without aim. Its bullets rained hell down from all directions and Nina shouted: "GO! GO! GO━!"

    Her friends listened. They took off at a brave sprint towards the open Crown Jewel's Vault. Happy snagged an iron shield from a nearby armour display and held it up over his head. He was the last one to join them as they heaved the doors closed. With a cry, he flung the shield outwards with a mighty swing.

    It landed only a few paces short of his own feet.

    "Damn it!" he cried. "How does Cap do that?!"

    The doors of the vault slammed closed.

    They stood there in a line, breathless and exhausted━their hearts pounding and stitches in their sides. They waited, and they waited, staring at the eight-feet thick walls and starting to wonder ... had they finally got themselves somewhere safe?

    There was a sharp, high-pitched sound. It made them all jump. Nina stared, horrified when a small, round circle━red-hot in colour, starting to burn through the doors.

    "Oh, come on!" shouted Betty.

    "This is it, this is it, this is it," whimpered Flash to himself. His knees were quivering. They all huddled together as they watched their lives slowly come to an end. "We're gonna die━I'm gonna die!"

    Nina held out her borrowed weapon, her Spider-Plush hanging out of one jean pocket, and the present she was yet to open stuck inside the other. "We're officially doomed..."

    And they knew it was true when her positivity had dimmed down to a dead flame.

    "We're gonna die," squeaked Ned.

    Happy clenched his hands and stood bravely at the end of the line. He glowered at the hole the drones were slowly burning through the reinforced walls. "Nobody dies on my watch."

    "Looks like we're about to," grumbled Felicia. "This is why I don't help people!" 

    "You don't help people because you're too scared to face the truth!" Nina snapped at her old friend, all of her fear and frustration bursting out all at once. "Don't lie!"

    "I told you Spider-Man was going to get you killed━he's getting us both killed!"

    "Would both of you shut up!" MJ interrupted their short argument, shaking in between the both of them.

    The entire room around them trembled as an echoing blast quaked the walls and the ceiling. Ned squealed. The door shuddered.

    He clenched his eyes shut and exploded out: "I wasted my life playing video games, and we're gonna die!"

    The room around them shuddered once more.

    "I have a fake ID!" cried Betty, close to tears. "And I've never even used it!"

    The ruby encrusted crown shook on its red velvet pillow inside its display. Dust started to fall from the ceiling.

    "I post stupid videos daily for people to like me!" whimpered Flash miserably.

    "Hey!" Happy spun to him, stern in his defence. "If it wasn't for those stupid videos, Spider-Man would've never found you."

    The room shook yet again━louder and harsher this time. The force outside was growing; it was starting to break through.

    Flash's face lit up, "Spider-Man━?" he choked. "S━Spider-Man follows me?" He started to grin, almost manic. "I━I━I saved us, guys!" he exclaimed with delight.

     MJ lost her nonchalant facade━she freaked out so much she yelled: "If you saved us then why are we about to die?!"

    Collectively, all of them spun to their friend and gasped, shocked: "MJ!"

    "I'm sorry!" she let out, emotional. "I'm sorry, okay?! I'm just━I'm━I'm obsessed with telling the truth even if it hurts other people's feelings!"

    They felt the next tremor deep within their bones. The Black Cat flung up her hands and announced to Nina, "I'm sorry, Nina! I'm so, so, so sorry! After the Blip I went to find you but then I got really, really scared because after everything that happened at Homecoming and my Dad I was super angry and I blamed you and I blamed Spider-Man and I just━I just was so scared and upset and mad at myself and I didn't know how to face you and so I ran away! I'm so, so, so sorry! I was scared! I was scared that you would hate me and that you would never want to see me again and so I pushed you away and I wish I never pushed you away, ever!"

    Nina turned to her. Her grip of the mace slipped downwards and her brows lifted━her shoulders started to rise; her heart clenched painfully. At first, she didn't know what to say, but then she muttered to her old friend: "You tried to find me after the Blip?"

    Felicia nodded. She was tearful behind her mask. Her next words were heavy with emotion, "You're my friend. No matter what. And I'm so sorry..."

    The door shuddered. Nina's bones trembled painfully. The sudden shock made her jump right out of her skin and she declared all of the sudden, "I like Spider-Man's abs."

    The Black Cat stared at her, "Seriously?!" she let out. "We were having a moment and as we're about to die you want your last words to be that?!"

    "I'm sorry!" exclaimed Nina in a whimper. "It just came out! I say random things when I'm freaking out! You're my friend, too! No matter what━!"

    She squealed at the next tremor.

    "I'm in love with Spider-Man's aunt," said Happy.

    They all spun to him, weirded-out. He frowned at them. "Wait ... W━we're sharing, right...?"

    The group of them: Nina, MJ, Ned, Felicia, Betty, Flash and Happy all waited for the next pounding hit of the door. When it didn't come, they each shared an anxious look. They waited a few moments, wondering what the drones were planning to do next on the other side. But those moments turned to a few seconds, and those seconds turned to a few minutes━there was nothing but silence from the other side of the vault doors.

    Happy reached out to MJ. "Give me the spear," he asked her, gesturing to the weapon she had been clutching this entire time.

    She passed it over. Ned couldn't help himself, he muttered: "That's a halberd."

    Betty turned to him, incredulous.

    Happy stepped forward. Nina, who had the only other weapon, followed. She held it up high as they all took a deep breath and pushed the doors open. She went to hit something, only for it to fall when she saw that there was nothing in sight. No drones, no murder bots━just a room full of shattered glass, and them.

    Mysterio's drones were gone.

    And that could only mean that Mysterio━himself━had to be gone. Which meant that Spider-Man had won.

    Flash threw his hands up, "Yeah!" he cheered, so relieved he screamed a victory so loudly in their ears he rest of them winced. "Whoo━!"

    Nina didn't pay him any attention. Her heart still pounded as if the danger had never once stopped━and before she knew it, her feet were moving at a run back down the aisle. Happy frowned after her, "Wait━where are you going?!"

    She didn't reply. She disappeared back down the winding passage way, her heart rising up to her throat━desperate to find him; just to know that he was okay.

*ೃ༄

    a/n: I seriously feel like my writing is shit. it probably isn't, but it just feels that way-

    MEMES!!!!!:

    I am and will continue to be obsessed with this meme format:

    this chapter, a summary:

    flash: *breathes*

    everyone else: *disappointed* flASH!!!!

    I low-key hate every chapter I write its gotten to the point y'all should just ignore my self-deprecating comments istg...