Across the Universe

The shaking halted about four minutes after it had begun though it had felt like it had been much longer. Scarlett had counted the seconds passing by in her head and kept her eyes closed in hopes of hearing something more than the panicked cries of SHIELD employees down the hall and the low, menacing rumbling beneath the building. Glass had shattered and there had been a strange popping sound Scarlett couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was familiar enough but nothing was coming to mind when she tried to conjure up images of what the source could be. Silence followed and Tony’s arms tightened around her.

Just as she reached into her pocket for her phone that would double as a flashlight there was a massive, earsplitting crash! Then metal creaked horribly outside.

“What the hell is happening?” Scarlett hissed to Tony but didn’t hear whatever answer he’d come up with over the sound of the explosion that followed. An explosion? It sounded further away than the rumbling had been. Something very nasty had happened outside on the streets of Manhattan. Her heart was beating in her ears so hard that Scarlett hadn’t realized the rush of noise had finally ceased. Tony’s grip, however, was still fast around her waist. For a brief few seconds Scarlett had forgotten she was in Manhattan, had forgotten she was in a place that was usually safe. Somewhere amidst the chaos she had grabbed onto Tony just as tightly as he had to her.

“I told you I had a bad feeling,” whispered Jinx to Mickey who was helping her back to her feet in the darkness with the aid of the desk nearby. Jinx hadn’t braced herself when the power had gone out and had slipped in the confusion. From the far end of the hall lights came on one by one. They weren’t substantial enough to be more than flashlights. The Agents of SHIELD seemed to be in full fledged crisis mode.

“Not now Bennett! Coulson? What’s going on? What was that?” Mickey silenced Jinx without actually meaning in hopes Phil Coulson could provide answers. Unfortunately Coulson seemed just as lost as they were. Scarlett lit up the room with her phone once she’d regained her wits. Natasha did the same with a flashlight. Seconds later emergency lighting along the corners of the walls and hallways provided them with just enough light to see each other and neither light was needed.

“I’ll suit up and see what I can find out.” Tony turned to Scarlett when Coulson didn’t give them an answer as they had hoped. He was just as lost as the rest of them were. Scarlett nodded her head to let Tony know he should go. He reluctantly let go of her, seemingly afraid to let her go, before he went running down the hall and out of sight. This was the first time that danger had reared its ugly head in front of them while they were together since they had returned from Russia.

“Hill? Hill, are you there?” Coulson called into his radio, paying those around him no mind. The faint sound of sirens could be heard in the distance.

“What do you think it is?” Scarlett whispered to Natasha who would be far more familiar with the building than she was. She had a feeling that the Black Widow knew the ins and outs of the SHIELD facility in ways that Scarlett could only hope to in the next few weeks. Neither woman had the patience to sit around waiting until Coulson gave them orders. Besides, Scarlett hadn’t signed any proper paperwork yet. As far as they were concerned, she was still a civilian.

“If there had been any structural failure in our building we would’ve felt something far worse than that. My guess is it’s something in the city, not at SHIELD.” Natasha whispered under her breath, eyeing Coulson as he spoke to Maria Hill on the other end of the radio. Somehow that comforted Scarlett less than it would’ve if it had been something at SHIELD. What were the odds that her first day at SHIELD would be the same day there was some kind of attack on the city of Manhattan? If this was some sick training exercise there would be hell to pay. Scarlett was all for a little hazing, but this was too much.

Then again, she should’ve been used to dangerous situations. Why had this shaken her so much? Apparently she wasn’t as on her game as she thought she was. Time away from danger had given it back some of its strength.

“There’s been no direct damage to the SHIELD facility other than our external power source.” Maria radioed back in response to a question they hadn’t heard Coulson ask. There was worry thick in her voice despite the good news she delivered.

“Then why aren’t the generators kicking on?” Mickey furrowed her brow, making her way with Jinx closer to Scarlett and Natasha stood eagerly waiting for news. Theories races through Scarlett’s thoughts. There had been explosions but they weren’t close enough away. The first thing Scarlett considered was that it had been disabled by some kind of electronic pulse. Instantly she thought of MedCo and wondered if Scott and Marcia had finally come for her.

“Why aren’t the generators kicking on?” Coulson repeated what everyone was thinking over the radio.

“I can’t give you an answer for that sir. All I can promise is that we’re working on it.” Maria responded with a note of hesitation in her voice. Coulson shook his head and then addressed the women in front of him, ignoring the chatter that continued without him over the airwaves.

“This building is now on lockdown. You know procedure and can fill Scarlett in. I’ve got to go check the perimeter for damage. Once I’m sure things are safe we’ll send a team to recover the generators and another out to find out what happened. Emergency lighting shouldn’t be active after a little shake like that. Something bigger must be going on.” Coulson started down the hall but abruptly stopped part of the way. “You four?” He turned to face the women that stood in front of him, mostly looking to Natasha and Scarlett since they were the most likely to cause trouble. “Stay put until we give the all clear. That’s an order.” Scarlett could see something glistening in Coulson’s eyes. It was almost like he was telling her not to listen.

Phil Coulson started down the hall, his pace increasing to a run by the time he’d reached the end of it. The four women sat in silence for about ten seconds before Scarlett broke it. There was no way she was going to sit around and wait for Coulson and Tony to fill them in.

“Screw that, I’m going to see what happened.” Scarlett hadn’t come armed but was considering that she was going to have to change that. There was no way she would be caught with her pants down in a dangerous situation again. Surely SHIELD could help her find a way around the strict laws that the state of New York had in place in regards to concealed weapons. She did, however, have a knife hidden on her person regardless of these laws. Scarlett didn’t like to leave the house without having a way to protect herself in a sticky situation. Danger seemed to be creeping up even in the most benign places.

“One second.” Natasha held up a hand to keep Scarlett from running after Coulson then disappeared into a room around the corner. Scarlett looked behind her to where Mickey and Jinx were watching them apprehensively. They seemed to want to say something about being told to stay behind but neither one of them spoke. Apparently they were deciding who they were scared of more: Natasha and Scarlett or Coulson.

“Are you two armed?” Scarlett looked more to Mickey than to Jinx, searching her eyes for a response. The woman immediately averted them and wondered silently if she should join them. After having learned that SHIELD had turned her down for a position as a field agent after she had passed every single test with flying colors she wasn’t inclined to believe everything she was told anymore. But she couldn’t help but be curious that maybe the apprehension that made her follow every rule she’d been taught was the same thing that kept her in her position as a paper pusher. Mickey nodded her head fervently to let Scarlett know she was, indeed, armed.

“I have a bad feeling.” Jinx whispered over the knot in her stomach. The words seemed physically taxing for her to get out.

“Does she ever not have bad feelings? All doom and gloom, this one.” Scarlett’s nerves were at it again but joking offered her no comfort.

“Coulson told us to stay put.” Mickey finally spoke her mind. “Regardless of bad feelings, intuition, or what have you. I’m sure he told us for a reason. Who knows what could’ve happened out there.”

“Yeah that’s pretty much the point I’m making.” Scarlett pulled her hair out of her face and tied it back. The wind would whip it around and she didn’t need it obstructing her view.

“Then we should stay here!”

“Coulson knows about as much as we do about what’s going on out there. Doesn’t it bother you that he let Tony fly out of here, but not you?” Scarlett turned her attention away from the two as Natasha approached her. They were leaving regardless of what Mickey and Jinx chose to do.

“Handgun, utility belt equipped with stun gun, wire that can handle a payload of a ton, radio tuned to SHIELD, and a switchblade just in case.” Natasha handed Scarlett the holster with the gun and then the belt. Scarlett discarded her jacket, tossing it over Jinx’s desk and slipped her tools into place. “I don’t do lockdown.” The Black Widow took one last look at Jinx and Mickey and assumed they were staying behind. “These things are nowhere near as high tech as what you and Stark have cooked up but it’s always served me well enough.” Scarlett placed the earpiece in placed, clipped the radio to her belt and checked the gun to make sure it was loaded. “Of course, there’s extra ammunition too. I wouldn’t want to leave you hanging.”

“You know I never needed the extra technology to keep up.” Scarlett smirked, tucking the extra clips in the belt she’d been given. “Though it doesn’t hurt either. Let’s go.”

“I know.” Natasha glanced at the other two SHIELD agents who stood awkwardly nearby. “You’re not coming?”

“Coulson said…”

“Coulson isn’t always right.” Natasha argued but she wouldn’t stay behind to try and convince them to follow along.

“Either come with us or stay behind. We’re leaving either way. Lead the way Tasha. We don’t have any time to waste.” Scarlett patted the shorter red head’s shoulder and then followed her down through the opposite hallway where Coulson had gone.

“From what I could tell the tremors began further this way. The source has to be in this direction. By the time the perimeter check is finished whatever’s going on out there will be in full swing, or far worse off than it is now.” Natasha was preparing for the worst. Given the size of the tremor an explosion or a collapse had to have occurred nearby. But the rumbling had caused the explosions and crashes they heard. It wasn’t untold for earthquakes to happen in New York but never that severe. They were too far from the fault line.

“Wait!” Mickey shouted, grabbing onto Jinx’s arm and urging her to follow along. Jinx checked her gun at her hip; it was standard procedure for SHIELD agents to be ready to protect themselves on the fly even if most of the ones that served as handlers for others didn’t need to be. “We’re coming with you!”

“Are we?” Jinx whispered but pulled her arm free of Mickey’s grasp and kept the pace, though she checked behind her to make sure no one was watching them.

“Good.” Scarlett didn’t look over her shoulder but continued forward. “What could’ve made that sound?” Racking her brain as she followed the Black Widow, Scarlett was still convinced she knew the sound from somewhere. But something wasn’t clicking in the back of her mind and she kept drawing a blank.

“I don’t know. I was hoping you did.” Natasha sounded just as puzzled as she led the women along through the dark halls and past empty offices. SHIELD Agents had been called to the central meeting room during lockdown.

“I don’t think we’re going to be able to get out this way. Coulson said the place was on lockdown, you know what that means.” Mickey warned when she realized that Natasha was leading them toward a series of halls that would eventually empty into an alley at the far end of the building. “It’ll be locked, everything will be.” Natasha threw Mickey a dark look and then walked to the doors regardless of the warning. After punching in her key code and receiving an error she looked to Scarlett, asking a question without words. The brunette nodded so Natasha grabbed the keypad and pulled it right off the wall, leaving the wires behind it exposed.

She bowed mockingly toward Scarlett and then stepped out of the way. Mickey and Jinx watched, feeling like guilty children seeking out where their parents hid the Christmas presents as Scarlett fiddled with the wires inside the wall. The emergency lighting seemed to be also powering the electronic doors. It didn’t surprise them in the least to find out that SHIELD had a backup for their backup.

“This was a bad idea.” Mickey muttered, shifting uncomfortably in place.

“And I have a bad feeling.” Jinx looked to Mickey knowingly. “We’re both going to have to get over it.” Scarlett squinted to get a better look at what she was up against until Natasha slipped a flashlight from her pocket and shined it over her shoulder so she could properly see the wires. After that it was a piece of cake. The doors slid open seconds later and they covered their mouths as the wind blew some kind of strange dust through the doors and into their faces. Scarlett and Natasha exchanged knowing glances before running out the side door of the SHIELD building, their urgency heightened. Mickey and Jinx followed reluctantly behind.

Scarlett had a bad feeling about what lay ahead. The dust was a very bad sign, at least to her. She thought back to Jinx and how she had practically predicted something nasty was going to happen. When things were said and done Scarlett was going to have to have a very long talk with Agent Coulson about Agent Jinx. The predictions she’d made about Scarlett’s life had been very unpleasant and now left her with a bad taste in her mouth.

Scarlett had seen that kind of dust before and kept her hand over her mouth as they walked alongside the building toward the street. It was brick dust. She’d gotten her lungs full of the stuff when she’d blown up a building to escape a few months ago from MedCo. It was never a good sign.

The dust lessened as she continued and her walk hastened at last into a run. Out in the street she stopped short next to Natasha and stared in awe ahead of her. The apartment building across the way from the SHIELD building was missing pieces of it. It didn’t make sense! Fire billowed from the rooftop and parts of the building already lay collapsed. Someone had made Swiss cheese out it, but how? What remained was unstable and had begun to dangerously wobble and fall to pieces. Natasha stared up at the building with her hand over her mouth to hide her amazement.

“Well, that only explains a few things.” Scarlett’s brain hurt trying to understand how such a feat was even possible.

“What could cause that, Scarlett?” Natasha whispered, finally taking her hand away. They didn’t have masks to wear so hopefully whatever was floating through the air wasn’t toxic. The dust had begun to settle since whatever event had occurred seemed to be over.

“I have no idea.” Scarlett shook her head from side to side then started toward the building. “It looks residential.” Overhead she could hear the familiar sound of Tony’s suit in the air. Apparently he had thought the same thing she did and was trying to guide people out through windows on the upper floors. “We have to get in there and evacuate. We’ll figure out the how and why later.” Scarlett turned her attention to Natasha who nodded to agree but didn’t take her eyes off of the building.

The center of the building was dangerously teetering; threatening to give way if any more of it collapsed. All it would take is one well placed crash or explosion and the whole apartment complex would cave into a pile of rubble on the street.

“How much time do we have? An estimate.” Natasha whispered, checking her belt and looking back to the SHIELD building.

“Not much. I don’t know the specs for this place but that’s a very heavy load to be teetering without anything to stabilize it below.” Scarlett swallowed the nerves in her throat. “I’d guess twenty minutes, a half an hour if we’re lucky. If SHIELD can put something in there to keep things afloat maybe we’ll have even longer. But if something slips or becomes misplaced then we’ll have seconds to get out.”

“It’ll have to be good enough. I’ll start the timer.” Natasha started toward the building but then stopped abruptly as she had begun. “Pierce!”

“What?” Mickey was staring at the crumbling building, afraid of what needed to be done. Scarlett and Natasha were ready to run into danger regardless of what could happen to them! Was she just as prepared as they were to risk her life for something with very little personal reward? Mickey wasn’t so sure. Maybe that was why she hadn’t been promoted to field agent yet. Despite the chaos in front of them and the obvious devastation she couldn’t get over that particular hurdle in her mind. She’d passed the tests, aced them even! And here she was still pushing paper.

“We have to evacuate the building. We need a place for them to go and the best place is…?” Natasha spoke sternly.

“Inside, I got it. What about Coulson?”

“Coulson’s not going to care what we’ve done when there are lives at risk.” Scarlett rolled her eyes. “The more time we waste chatting about it the less time we have to get people to safety.” Already there were people closer to the ground levels of the floor scrambling away from the building. Smoke was billowing from parts of the building, obstructing their view of the top. Gas lines that had been ruptured had set fire to several parts of the building. Their window of opportunity was very quickly closing.

“Alright, alright!” Mickey pulled her phone out of her pocket and spoke into it like a radio. “Agent Hill, Agent Coulson! Make room, we have civilians in the way of harm and a building on the way down.” She spoke quickly into the radio, her instincts finally kicking in.

“You ready?” Natasha looked back to Scarlett who nodded firmly. The two women started toward the building that was crumbled and badly damaged in some places. The red brick apartment complex didn’t have long left but as they drew closer they could see just how dire the situation had become. With any luck most of the residents had been out at work during that hour and the loss of life would be minimal.

“This building is coming down whether you like it or not.” Mickey responded to a call in the radio, swallowing the fear she’d first felt upon seeing the collapse. “I know I’m in no place to make any demands but I’d recommend sending SHIELD Agents to evacuate a two block radius for when this thing crashes.” Mickey hung the radio on her hip and turned to Jinx who looked equally as apprehensive. “I’m going to work on clearing a path for survivors.” Mickey sounded far more determined than she appeared. On the radio they received confirmation for Mickey’s needs but they could also hear that a crisis had occurred near the generators closer to the water. That would account for why there were so few SHIELD Agents on this side of the building.

“Good idea!” Jinx perked up instantly. “I’m going to grab my computer and see if I can plug into one of the vans. If I can get scans of the building then I can let you guys know when it’s time to get out of the way and where the problems are. We might even be able to stabilize what remains!” Jinx was already running back alongside the SHIELD office to go and get her things. It wasn’t much of a plan but it was the best plan they had.

“Scarlett?” Natasha climbed in through one of the broken windows of the building since the front entrance had been reduced to rubble. Scarlett was helping an older man out through a window nearby and guiding him away from the building after she was sure he could walk on his own. Mickey ran up to her and took over, guiding the man toward SHIELD. Much to her surprise, Coulson and Hill must have taken her words to heart. Agents were beginning the evacuation of nearby buildings and setting up a perimeter as they had been trained to. Two agents were at the entrance to the SHIELD building and were setting up an area for trauma victims.

“What?” Scarlett jumped onto the windowsill and braced herself, feeling for trembling within the building before she made her next move. Her mind was going a mile a minute trying to understand how only parts of the building had disappeared. There were no large piles of debris on the ground to account for what was missing. The only rubble and collapsed pieces had been caused by the absence of what she could not understand.

Buildings didn’t just disappear. Pieces of buildings didn’t just disappear! Hell, nothing just disappeared. There was always a rhyme or a reason to when something went missing. Scarlett couldn’t wrap her mind around it and it was driving her crazy. Even the craziest phenomenon had a rational explanation, Scarlett knew there had to be one for this too.

“You need to get up there.” Natasha nodded up to the top of the building that was swaying dangerously. Scarlett almost objected but then nodded her head. There was no time for them to argue. One of them had to go up and it might as well had been her. If she fell, it was more likely that Tony would come to her rescue than he would for Natasha. Not to say that he would let Natasha fall, but he wasn’t emotionally invested in her existence either. If Tony knew that was her plan he would be so mad. It was a good thing she had no plans to tell him until after she was on the roof.

“Right.” Scarlett gave her the thumbs up and instead of climbing through the window as originally intended, Scarlett grabbed onto the sill above her and used the remainder of the door frame to boost herself up. Her movements were swift and fluid. As long as she stayed focused and didn’t look down she’d make it to the top in no time.

“I’ve got the exits covered! Send people down when you can.” Mickey shouted up to them, throwing debris away from the path she was making from the door. “I’m going to work on emptying out this doorway!”

“Don’t!” Scarlett pulled on the railing above her to make sure it wouldn’t collapse. She then climbed on top of the railing. It groaned but didn’t budge. “That door is done for. Leave it be! It’s not worth clearing out. If it gets any worse it could level the floor above it. We don’t want to do any further damage if we can help it! Your best bet is to use the window Widow’s climbed in on the right. Clear out a path in front of it and get a ladder.” Mickey was flustered but nodded quickly and starting to clear out the path as told. Natasha disappeared inside the building but Scarlett could hear her shouting out for survivors to call out to her but not to move.

“Scarlett, I’ve got a path up to the top floor for you. There are heat signatures up there but not many. Tony’s surveying the damage outside but not risking going in. From what I can tell this path should be safe but be careful anyway.” Jinx’s voice echoed into Scarlett’s earpiece and nearly made her lose her balance on the end of the railing.

“Thanks, Jinx.” Scarlett braced herself again and then leapt from the edge of her railing with every intention of catching onto the one above so she could pull herself up. Before she could catch onto it something flew in her path.

Tony in his Iron Man armor pulled her away from the railing and carried her back to the ground. “What the hell?” She shouted, immediately shoving him off of her as they landed. Tony flipped open the helmet of his armor and pointed a finger at her threateningly. She could see the worry in his wide brown eyes but she didn’t care. There was no chance that she was going to sit idly by while he got to play hero, not when she was perfectly capable of helping those trapped in the building!

“Go back inside!” Tony shouted and made like he was going to take off again.

“Tony, there are people trapped in there!” Scarlett grabbed onto the wrist of his armor to stop him from taking off. She was no match for the Iron Man armor but it wasn’t going to stop her from trying.

“I know, and I don’t want you to be one of them! Get somewhere safe! This is too dangerous!”

“Tony, I know what I’m doing. You can’t keep me cooped up like I’m something that’ll break! I can help get these people to safety. We can work together, but only if you let me help!” Scarlett pled. Honestly, whatever Tony’s answer was he was just going to have to get over it. She was going to help!

“Damnit, Scarlett, get inside! We’ll talk about this later! There’s no time right now” Tony snapped his helmet back down and made to fly off.

“I’m not going inside! How come it’s okay for you to fly into danger and help people but not for me to do what I’m good at?” Scarlett stamped her foot, practically screaming at him to come back. “I’m far more qualified for this type of work than you are, I don’t know what you think you’re doing!”

“I’m covered in armor! If I fall from the third floor I’m not going to die!”

“And neither will I because I’m resourceful.” Scarlett shouted at him in response. “You do not get to tell me what I can and can’t do just because we’re dating!” Tony had never seen Scarlett so angry at him before. Her eyes were wide and her hands were practically trembling with rage. He knew he couldn’t have this fight, not here, not now when things were so dire.

“Fine!” He shouted through the intercom equipped in the suit. “But we’re not done talking about this!”

“You’re damn right we’re not!” Scarlett started back toward the building but instead felt the suit lift her up again. “Oh, Stark, I swear if you don’t put me down…” Her face turned red with anger.

“Calm down, your face matches your name. I’m giving you a lift!” Tony nodded to the top of the building. Scarlett exhaled but clenched her jaw, still angry. She kissed him and then turned her attention back to the crumbled building. Tony stared at her in surprise and waited for a follow up but none came.

“Tony, are we going or not? We’re just sitting here.” Scarlett sighed. Her anger had dissipated for the time being. She couldn’t afford to let her emotions distract her.

“I thought you were mad at me.” Tony pouted.

“Really? There’s a building collapsing and that’s what you’re waiting for?” Scarlett scoffed and Tony snapped the helmet back down of his armor.

“Hold on.” He couldn’t help but smile despite the short lived argument they’d had. While he didn’t want her in the building or anywhere near SHIELD he knew that at least this way he could keep an eye on her. She was right. There were lives on the line and they couldn’t afford to fight about it. In his heart he knew just how good she was at what she did, but he couldn’t help but worry.

Scarlett could hear Natasha in her earpiece telling her that she did the right thing. Scarlett wrapped her arms around the suit and braced herself as it shot off of the ground like a rocket. She absolutely hated flying with Tony’s suit. It was the least pleasant way to travel. Through the smoke she closed her eyes, but it never cleared up as she had hoped. The fire at the top of the building had gotten worse and smoke engulfed the roof.

“Setting you down!” Tony spoke through the helmet and carefully let Scarlett go a few feet above the rooftop. She landed carefully and then braced herself in case the ground gave way. The building was teetering dangerously beneath her feet and making her dizzy. Gingerly she made her way to the door that would lead her inside to the stairwell but found that it was latched from the inside. No matter how hard she pulled it wouldn’t give. “Get back!”

“Tony, don’t!” Scarlett shouted but it was too late. She jumped out of the way as Tony aimed a blue laser at the doorway, cutting the metal away from the hinges. The door fell away at once but Scarlett stepped in front of it to catch it and then cautiously laid it down onto the ground. She coughed and covered her mouth to try and keep the smoke out of her lungs for as long as she could. The Iron Man suit made to land next to her but she waved her hands frantically and stepped beneath his feet.

“What?” Tony stopped just short of her, moving to her left so that the thrusters wouldn’t harm her.

“Don’t land! This thing is going to collapse under your weight.”

“That’s not very nice. Just because you’re mad at me…”

“That suit weighs a ton.” Scarlett threatened and then coughed again. Tony grimaced but didn’t mention his worries out loud. If Scarlett needed help she would ask for it, she had made that perfectly clear. “Try to put out the fires the best you can from out there. I’m not going to be able to breathe in here very long if this keeps up.”

“Yeah, that makes me feel so much better. You are the best at reassuring people.” Tony grumbled but did as he was told, flying away from the roof and around to the windows below. “Jarvis, do a scan for me.”

“Yes, sir. It appears that there was an electrical short on the ninth floor which has started this fire. Perhaps it would be a good place to start?” The computer spoke comfortingly in his ear. Jarvis always knew how to help. “In the meanwhile I will keep an eye and ear on Miss Damien as to ease your mind.”

“My mind or yours Jarvis? Sometimes I can’t tell.” Tony flew around the building, letting his computer add in red highlighted blueprints to his vision to show exactly where things were beyond the walls in front of him, including Scarlett who was several floors above him.

“A little of both, sir.” Tony chuckled at Jarvis’ response but then focused on the fire. He’d have to break the window but it would only make the flames worse.

“Prepare for blowback, Jarvis.” Tony gritted his teeth and then shot the glass out of the nearby window. As predicted the oxygen hit the fire and the wind dragged it out of the stifling room. The fire raged hotter and brighter, crawling up the side of the building, the Iron Man suit having been blown a few feet back from the force. “Remember that coolant test we were running a few weeks ago?”

“I remind you it was a test, sir.”

“Well, we’re about to work it into real world application.” Tony braced himself with the thrusters on his boots and then held both his palms toward the window.

“I don’t recommend it, but you never do listen to me so you might as well take one for the team.”

“Go for it? That’s what I like to hear Jarvis!” Tony smirked but then flipped a few switches in his gloves. “Here goes nothing!” The light blue liquid sprayed from Tony’s gloves and through the window toward the target on his screen. It sizzled and crackled as it hit the fire, making more smoke than there had been before but Tony had a clear view of what was going on thanks to Jarvis. The coolant he’d been designing had coated the wires and stopped the source of the fire and doused the nearby flames. “Jarvis, how’s it looking?”

“Stable, sir. However it seems as though there are multiple fires sparking throughout the building due to the same wiring problem. Someone didn’t build this place up to code.”

“Great, sounds like half of Manhattan.” Tony grimaced and then switched over to the radio feed he’d been monitoring from SHIELD. “Scarlett, keep an eye out. This place is volatile! Wiring’s bad, fires are starting left and right. I’m going to keep putting them out but there’s only so much I can do.”

“Got it!” Scarlett held her hand over her mouth as she ran down the stairs from the roof and further into the stairwell. Smoke was billowing out of one of the apartments on the top floor so she closed the door in hopes to stop the spread of the spoke for a little while. “Jinx, I need a little help here! And hopefully a fire extinguisher.”

“Okay, you see the apartment you’re in front of now? 12B?” Scarlett could hear the woman typing furiously over the radio. “Go down the hall but be careful! It looks like the floor gave out there from whatever this… thing was! Across the gap you’ll see 12J and the door is wide open. There are people inside! I’m reading six heat signatures on this floor! As for a fire extinguisher, you’re on your own!”

“Can’t have everything, I guess.” Scarlett muttered under her breath and then started down the hall, thankfully away from the smoke. The ground moved beneath her as the wind blew outside and she could hear the woodwork creaking and caving around her. The top of the building wasn’t going to last very long at this rate. Scarlett could only hope it would last long enough for her to get these people to safety.

“Found the weak point.” Scarlett stared at the gaping hole in the ground in front of her. “You did not mention how big it was.” She could see several floors below and it struck her again as odd. Whatever had caused this was nothing like she’d ever seen before. It was like giant hands had reached within the building and tore massive pieces out of it as though they were made from clay. The gap was large, too large to cross with just a jump. There were wires and beams sticking out that hadn’t disappeared with the rest of the floor below. But if they didn’t hold her weight she would surely fall and take some damage.

She’d figure it out when it happened, she wasn’t betting on falling. Taking a few steps back, Scarlett coughed to clear her lungs of the toxic smoke and then started at a run. When she reached the gap she leapt over it and managed to barely catch onto the edge of the floor across the way. One of the beams next to her cracked and broke, falling beneath her. Thankfully Scarlett managed to catch onto one that held her properly. She swung off of it and onto one closer to the wall that remained intact above. Using it to brace herself she was able to jump onto the floor, landing in a low crouch. Catching her breath for only a second, Scarlett ran through the apartment hallway.

On the left she could see a door wide open and guessed that was where she needed to go. Just as she had suspected there were people inside, as Jinx had described. They were scraped up and arguing about how they were going to get out of the building. One of them spoke broken English and kept yelling about Iron Man being outside in what she thought Spanish.

“I need everyone to be quiet!” Scarlett shouted over them and they turned to look at her. Instantly the group panicked and started yelling at each other once again. She mentally deflated. “Calm down! Calm down! I’m here to help!” But the panic only grew worse. One woman was looking at her and shouting in Portuguese, apparently trying to explain to her what had happened. Scarlett could only guess she was imploring her to help them. “Does anyone here speak English?”

“I do!” The youngest of the group, a teenage boy who had tissues shoved in one side of his nostril to stop a bloody nose, stepped forward. “Who are you?”

“Not important right now, kid.” Scarlett looked toward the window. “We have to get you out of here. Can you translate for me? Or at least convince your friends to calm down and stop screaming?” Scarlett nodded toward the woman who kept grabbing her arm and trying to talk to her. The young boy nodded his head and spoke calmly even though Scarlett could tell he was stuttering. Finally the older woman stopped screaming at her.

“What do you want us to do?” The boy searched for instruction. Scarlett could see his hands trembling despite how confident he was trying to sound.

“I want everyone to follow me into the bedroom and near the far window. Be careful, walk slow.” Scarlett nodded toward the bedroom. “My friend is going to help carry you to safety.”

“We couldn’t go down the stairs, the path is broken. Everything is on fire.” The boy spoke hesitantly. Scarlett grabbed his shoulders and looked at him seriously. He wasn’t as calm as she had hoped.

“What’s your name, kid?”

“Antonio. I stayed home from school with the flu. I never thought that this would happen…” His bottom lip quivered with fear. Scarlett turned her gaze away and then crouched down to be eye to eye with him. She didn’t exactly have time to convince him that things were going to be okay but she didn’t have time to deal with him panicking either.

“Antonio, my name is Scarlett. Your friend was right, Iron Man is outside and so are a bunch of his friends. I’m his friend too. When I open that window in the bedroom he’s going to meet us and carry you to safety down below. Don’t worry, I promise you’ll be just fine.” She nodded her head and Antonio nodded resolutely though he didn’t seem at all sure that anyone was really going to be fine. Scarlett couldn’t rightly blame him, not after she’d seen the interior damage of the building. “Can you tell them?” Scarlett nodded to the group that was staring at them hopefully.

“Yes.” Antonio walked over to a woman that was clearly a relative of his and spoke in a hushed tone. She then spoke to the rest of the group, hopefully explaining Scarlett’s instructions properly.

“Tony, can you see me?” Scarlett turned away from the group. Her lungs had finally stopped aching since she’d gotten away from the smoke. She knew, however, that it was only a matter of time before the whole building went up in flames.

“Always.” Tony responded in her ear.

“That’s a little disconcerting, but find the fire escape window nearest me. Jinx can you send him coordinates just in case?” Scarlett was glad they were all on the same channel or it would’ve made things far more complicated.

“Can do!” Jinx chimed in.

“Got it. Open the window, baby, I’m right outside.” Tony joked over the radio. Scarlett shook her head in dismay then followed the group of scared civilians into the master bedroom of the apartment. She unlocked and opened the big window and then sat on the sill. Carefully she tested the fire escape before putting all her weight on it. Sure enough Tony was waiting outside in the Iron Man armor.

“Antonio!” Scarlett called in through the window. The teenager poked his head through the gap and looked to her nervously. When he saw Iron Man was there as promised he brightened up and smiled at last. Scarlett felt relieved and offered her hand to the boy. “Tony, get this kid out of here. Careful okay? It’s a mess in there and these people are shaken.” Antonio climbed carefully through the window and onto the fire escape.

“Oh, you know me and my gentle hands, Scarlett.”

“That’s precisely why I’m worried.” Scarlett bent to look through the window and waved for the next person to come out. Tony popped up the helmet of his suit and looked down at Antonio who stared at him with his mouth agape.

“Now when I pick you up you have to hold on tight and try not to panic. It always makes it harder when people panic.” Tony smiled reassuringly even as the building groaned and creaked beneath them. “Scarlett, get back inside after this. I don’t trust this fire escape.”

“You don’t have to ask me twice.” Scarlett helped Antonio climb over the railing and waited until she was sure Tony had a good grip on him. Then she turned and helped the woman who was clearly related to him out onto the fire escape with her. The building shifted beneath her and she closed her eyes, concentrating on her breathing. Only five more people and then she could get out of there. “Holy vertigo.” She exhaled sharply and then looked reassuringly to the woman standing next to her.

“Iron Man.” The woman spoke with a strong accent and pointed to Tony.

“Yeah, that’s him.” Scarlett nodded her head. It was always amazing to see how much faith people had that Tony was there to save them. No matter what stupid things he did sometimes, Tony was still the only hero Scarlett really knew. She’d never tell him that, but it was true.

“Hold on.” Tony flipped the helmet of his suit down again before flying down toward the SHIELD building with Antonio in tow. On the roof nearby Coulson was standing with the door to the building propped open and hailing him down. Tony landed with a thud next to him and let Antonio go warily. Seeming to understand that he had to get out of the way, Antonio ran over to where Coulson was waiting. He’d had every intention of bringing him to the ground until then.

“Stark!” Coulson called before Tony took off into the sky again to pick up another civilian.

“What?” Tony stopped short.

“Bring the rest here, even if they’re injured. Shorter distance than the ground. Good job!” Coulson seemed flustered. His team had disobeyed his orders, but given the circumstances he was grateful for it.

“Seriously, now you compliment me?” Tony scoffed and then disappeared into the smoke. Five more, it should’ve been easy. Then he could get Scarlett to safety and they could safely demolish the building to keep the damage to a minimum. Somehow he doubted that it would go according to plan. Nothing ever did.