Said The Spider To The Fly

The cooks began to file into the Cafeteria. Easily identified by their white outfits and hats. They didn’t really give Serena much attention as someone being there probably wasn’t unusual. They turned the rest of the lights on and before long she heard and smelled the beginnings of breakfast being prepared for the mansion.

After a while, Colossus came in dressed and ready to go. He wore a modified version of the X-Men outfit with his arms completely exposed. “Ah, Serena Stark, you are eager to find Peter yes? Don’t you worry. We will find him,” He said confidently and moved to get a cup of coffee himself.

Scott was next followed by Nightcrawler and then Storm. Breakfast selections were beginning to appear and Colossus got up to go fill his tray. Rogue was next but it was obvious she hadn’t slept well. That and it looked as if she had been crying. She stepped in and her expression changed to decidedly frosty as she weaved around everyone to get to the food line. Gambit was last to enter and he went straight for the coffee though he glanced at Serena as he did and nodded to her with that small smile he always had for her. He exhumed confidence as he filled a mug then turned and sat down across from her just as Scott and Storm did. Colossus came next to their table with a heaping tray of food. Pancakes, at least a dozen sausage links, 2 parfaits, 4 biscuits, half a dozen eggs and fried potatoes.

Scott winced at seeing all of that. But that was nothing new. Gambit said in a soft tone. “We’ll talk in a bit,” He said under his breath. Rogue finally joined them and she smiled tiredly as she sat down on the other side across from Scott. “Well I’m happy to see you’re up and around. Good, we’re likely to get some action today and we do not know what we are facing,” he said.

Serena finally began to drink her coffee and slowly she began to feel more awake. She watched as the rest of her team members began to file in to the cafeteria. She knew that she should probably eat something, but she didn't feel hungry. She felt herself starting to get anxious about how the day might go. She hadn't seen Peter since she left the Tower and she wasn't sure how she was going to feel upon seeing him either. As Rogue walked in Serena could immediately see that she had been crying. She began to think that perhaps Gambit had something to do with that. When Gambit walked in their eyes met for a moment and she couldn't help but smile at his smile towards her. As he sat down in front of her she looked at him and then heard what he said. She glanced at Rogue and she actually felt sorry for her.

After Scott spoke, Serena spoke up and began to fill the team in a little bit more about Peter's abilities so they would be prepared. "I'm not entirely sure how the suit has affected his abilities, but I would be prepared for almost anything."

Scott has everyone tune to the correct comm channel and he scrutinized what Serena had said to him about Peter’s abilities.

“So if we come at him at different sides his spider senses won’t be able to avoid all of our attacks. We have a holding cell designed for him but to get him we need a solid grapple so Colossus, Serena and Rogue will get that duty so Nightcrawler can come in and touch him and get him in there. Storm and myself will Harry him with ranged attacks and Gambit will try to keep him bottled up so we can get at him,” Scott said. “I think once he’s into us he’ll try to flee and we can’t let that happen. If you have to wound him then do it but otherwise this is strictly a capture mission,” he said.

“Any questions?” He asked and when no one said anything he continued. “By the way, the Avengers will be helping us on this so when they arrive I’ll coordinate our attack strategy with them,” Scott said. “Ok, get to the blackbird,” he said and everyone began to get up from their chairs. Gambit hung back and gestured for her to hang back to.

“I officially ended it with Rogue. I didn’t want to keep her hoping and I want to out all of my energy and time into us Serena,” Gambit said as he reached out and touched her face. “If it doesn’t work out then I’ll know it won’t be because i didn’t do everything I could to keep you. I will do whatever it takes Serena. I can’t lose you again Cherie Mwen,” He said softly then gently kissed her lips.

Serena listened to Scott's plan and she agreed with what he was suggesting. They would need to work together. Serena would need to put aside her feelings for both Gambit and Peter in order to do what she needed to to save Peter. She was rather nervous to hear that her parents would be there as well. She hadn't seen them since she left the Tower and there was quite a bit of unspoken feelings between them all. She knew at some point they would need to talk through it all, but that day would not be today. Today was about Peter.

As everyone got up to head to the Blackbird, Serena noticed Gambit's gesture and she hung back. She saw the look Rogue gave them and she knew what Gambit was going to say before he even said it. She listened to him though and looked into his eyes. He would know from looking back into her eyes that she loved him. There was no doubt of that. But she was still holding herself back a little. Part of her heart still belonged to Peter. But what Gambit was doing was undoubtedly proving his love to her and she was taking notice of that. Two years ago Serena never would have thought of Gambit as the commit to one person type of guy, but now...now she could see that and it had started to change everything for her.

She closed her eyes and kissed him back. When their lips parted she opened her eyes and then reached into a pocket on his suit. She pulled out the Queen of Hearts and she smiled a little when she saw it. It was a little more worn around the edges than the last time she had seen that card. Evidence of him carrying it around for two years. She carefully slipped it back into his pocket and then looked up into his eyes.

"I love you Gambit."

“Scott I’m detecting him in the city at Washington and Evert Street,” Charles said over the comms. The jet was in stealth mode and Storm and Scott were pilot and co pilot. Nightcrawler looked back and grinned at Serena. Gambit smirked at Nightcrawler. “Looks like you made a new friend,” He said softly to Serena.

Peter had finally located The Green Goblin. He had planned on robbing the 5th National Bank over on Evert Street and it was high time that he put the annoying creature out of his misery. He felt...powerful in the suit and it was as if it was speaking to him, sometimes. The Goblin began to ascend on his sled when Venom hopped down right onto it and kicked him off. He allowed the sled to crash into the side of a nearby building but he jumped off of it onto the roof where The Goblin had landed after his fall.

“Hello Goblin, you’ve robbed your last bank!” He growled as Goblin began to fight him off. As it began he knew this time, he was fighting for his very life.

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“Ok team, Charles Xavier has Peter at Washington and Evert. The X-Men are already there so we’ll need to play catch up. Scott informed me of their plan and its a good one. The jet their on his carrying a containment cell and they only need to catch him. Once we catch him Nightcrawler will teleport him into the cage. Since they have lead, we will play backup,” Steve said as the jet took off.

Tony squeezed Isabella’s hand and gave her a small smile but he didnt say anything right then. Natalya was pilot with Steve as co-pilot and Logan stood and held onto a ceiling handle just back from the cockpit. Pharaoh was behind Tony and Isabella and he hoped that Jean Gray was going to be there so he could speak to her.

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“Ok Team, Rogue and Serena, your on,” Scott said as they began to hover over a roof of a tall building. As the two flew out the jet flew down to another build not quite so tall and deposited the cage. Nightcrawler teleported down with it then ran to the edge nearest the action. Colossus dropped cables down to the street so they could all bail out. Storm set the blackbird on autopilot to land in a field they knew about a half a mile away. After everyone was out the jet took off westward toward the field.

Just their presence disrupted traffic and people on foot began to run the other way.

As they neared the city everything started to really become real and Serena's heart began to beat harder in her chest. She was very worried about Peter and she knew that they needed to find him and fast. They were only really going to have one shot at this so they needed to make it work. When Nightcrawler turned around and smiled at her she smiled back. Somehow, Kurt's friendship and support meant a lot to her. She leaned in to Gambit and whispered back to him. "He's a good guy. I'm glad to have such a friend."

As they neared the drop point, Serena got ready. She was already in her suit. She reached over and took Gambit's hand for a moment and gave it a gentle squeeze before she stood up. She activated her face mask and her HUD systems came on. Then she flew down onto the roof of the building. It only took her a moment to locate Peter. He was fighting the Green Goblin and the way Peter looked in that suit terrified her. It was so much worse than she had imagined.

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Natalya guided the jet towards Washing and Evert. She didn't know what to expect when they found Peter, but she was prepared for anything. She wished they had Kate, but Kate had had to stay with William. Isabella looked over at Tony as she felt his hand squeeze hers. She gave him a small, encouraging smile. A few minutes later they had arrived at the site. Natalya dropped the rest of the team off before going to land the jet.

“Does anyone have eyes? I see someone else with him on the roof,” Scott asked.

Peter tossed the goblin down like a rag doll. The man was bleeding profusely from different places and Peter straddled him and continued to pummel him with his fists.

“He’s nearing the hell out of..Someone, whoever it is their in bad shape,” Rogue said.

——————-

Tony and Isabella were up high. Tony saw Isabella looking for Serena and he had had enough. “Focus on Peter...We’ll see her soon enough,” he said roughly. “That’s the Green Goblin. It looks as if he’s killing him. Serena, do you think he’ll talk with you? We know he was the one who hurt you, it’s up to you though,” Tony said over the comma.

“What? HE did that to you?” Gambit said over the comms. “Can the chatter Gambit, Serena, give it a try,” Scott said.

Serena could see Peter with the Green Goblin and the more she watched him the more afraid of him she became. However, she knew that she had to try something. She had to try to get through to him. She hoped that he would respond to her. She didn't want them to have to hurt him if they could avoid it. She could hear Gambit's response to learning that Peter had been the one to cause her black eye and the bruises on her neck and she spoke directly to him.

"I'll be fine Gambit. I need to try this."

She flew over and neared Peter. She landed close, but with enough distance between them to keep herself more comfortable. She retracted her face mask and looked at him.

"Peter...it's me...Serena."

Venom wanted to kill this man, he had been a thorn in his side for years. “Let’s see what is under this mask!” Venom said and as he opened his maw to bite his face off he heard a familiar voice.

With some alarm, he shifted his gaze to a woman in one of Tony’s suits. “Serena?” He said in his alien voice. “I no longer Know a woman named Serena...what does she want with us?” He said. His face had a massive mouth with a very long forked tongue.

Serena's eyes grew wide in fear as she looked at the person who used to be Peter. She wanted to be sick. There was no resemblance to Peter anymore, but she knew he was in there...somewhere. She just needed to get to him. She kept her voice steady and even and soft in tone.

"I need to speak to Peter Parker. Peter...I know you're still in there. It's Serena...your best friend. I still remember the day we met. It was at the high school and it was the first day of school. I had opened up my locker door just as you were walking past and it smacked you right in the face. You and I were best friends from that day forward. You created that prom night for me at the school and we were Prom King and Queen. Don't you remember that?"

Venom seemed to focus on her for a moment. He did seem to remember that but it was like a distant haze in his mind. His face in the black mask seemed to normalize as he looked at her. “We remember...why have you come,” he said as the goblin struggled beneath him. He didn’t seem to notice. However he did look up and around himself then returned his gaze back to her. “So many are here…” he said

"Peter, we're worried about you. All of these people are here for you. We care about you. You've avenged Aunt May and she would be proud of you. Will you please come with me?" She extended her hand and stepped towards him.

“Aunt May...We remember Aunt May,” he said as he tried to remember why that name was so important. With her face mask raised he saw her face and he thought he remembered her to. “Peter...and Serena...we were Peter and Serena?” He asked.

Serena looked at Peter with affection and a few tears in her eyes. "Yes, we were." She stepped even closer to him with her hand still out. "Please Peter. I still love you and I want to know you are safe."

“Safe?” He asked and then looked down at the green goblin. “There is no safe...we know we are in danger,” he said. “And we know why you’re here,” he said and then twisted the green goblins head so far that it cracked. His foot twitched but he no longer struggled anymore.

“Are you safe Serena?” Venom asked and then he attacked.

When Serena saw Peter, or whoever he was now, kill the Green Goblin she knew that she had failed in getting him to go with her. Unfortunately, she had moved closer to him in order to try and convince him to leave with her and he was able to attack her. She managed to get far enough back from him to shoot an energy blast at him to get him away from her.

"I need backup!"

When she tried to fly away Venom webbed her and he forced her to arc until she flew back around and hit the roof. She rolled but he was on her in an instant. In her helmet he looked more alien than human and his hands were once again around her throat.

—————-

Tony and Isabella rushes down from where they were and at the same time Rogue and Storm rushed in as well. Storm had already assembled clouds and lightning struck near them. As Serena struggled with Venom she saw his suit nearly jump off of him when the thunderclap hit them. It was extremely loud and it shook the entire building.

As the others arrived Venom jumped up from her, webbed Rogue, kicked Isabella and jumped on Tony in one fluid motion. Tony used his repulsors and knocked him off and he ran and jumped off of the building.

Serena saw the suit nearly jump off of Peter's body when Storm's thunderclap hit him. She knew then that the suit must be alien and she became instantly even more concerned for Peter's safety. As he released her she managed to get up and she looked over the edge of the building where he had jumped down. She flew down after him and tried to hit him with her energy blasts. Natalya was ready with a tranq gun and was prepared to use it.

Those on the ground went for him. Gambit tossed cards at him and he jumped away a hair before they exploded. Night crawler and Colossus were right there and Colossus managed to grab him. But Venom managed to slip his grip. Cyclops fires his memetic beam but Venom dodged and flipped and avoided it. Natalya fires several tranq darts but Venom had been just to fast. Captain America hit him in the chest with his shield and he crashed back into the side of the building they were near. Bricks went flying as he hit. Venom webbed Natalya and he pulled her off balance toward him. As he did Logan leaped down and cut through the webs with his claws but Venom leaped and climbed back up the wall. As Serena leaned over the edge of the roof Storm tried to hit him again with lightning. The lightning missed again but when the thunderclap hit again Venom threw his hands to cover his ears and his suit once again half way pulled off of him as if the sound had hurt it in some way.

Serena saw the suit once again come half way off at the sound of thunderclap and she suddenly had an idea.

"Storm, I think the thunderclaps are causing the suit to come partially off. When I give you the signal do that again and I will grab it and try to pull it the rest of the way off."

She saw Venom coming up towards her and she stepped back away from the edge of the roof. If she managed to get the suit off she didn't want Peter falling. Her heart was pounding in her chest as he came towards her. When he was close enough she called out to Storm and as soon as the thunderclap hit she grabbed onto the suit as it came halfway off and began to pull.

Venom screamed a horrible scream and it fought to keep itself onto Peter. As Serena pulled it began to wrap itself around her arms. She could fee it begin to apply pressure to her forearms and a red flashing began as a warning in her HUD that the suit was near to damage there. Just as she felt her forearms begin to hurt however Nightcrawler was there and in the next instant both of them were gone. They appeared in the cage and then Nightcrawler teleported himself out and was standing beside the cage.

“We have him,” Kurt said into the comma. Gambit was near Serena in an instant. “are you alright?” He asked her worriedly as the others raced toward the cage. Isabella and Tony landed near her as well.

“Serena, are you alright?” Tony asked.

Serena was alright physically, but clearly she was not alright emotionally. In fact, she was nearly in tears and she had to step away for a moment to compose herself. She didn't know if she was ever going to be able to fully get over this. Images of that strange, alien face continued to remain stuck in the forefront of her mind.

Isabella watched as Gambit walked over to Serena and spoke softly to her and then put his arms around her for a moment. She nodded to something he said and wiped away the tears from her eyes before going to join the others. She remained back from the cage. Memories of him choking her twice now would forever haunt her dreams.

"So, what do we do with him now?"

Isabella spoke up. "We do have an area in the Tower that was designed to hold the Hulk if need be. We could put the cage in that room for now. Do you think Charles could do anything to help him?" she said to Scott.

Serena then remembered something. She looked over at Natalya and motioned for her to come over. Colossus was standing there as well. "Colossus this is Natalya Sokolova. She is Russian like yourself."

Colossus came over and smiled at Natalya. “It is always good to meet someone who has come from the motherland. I wonder what else we have in common,” Colossus said as Logan came over. “Ok big guy,let’s not get to carried away,” he said. Obviously feeling a little jealous. And he moved in between Colossus and Natalya though he tried to be nonchalant about it.

“Is it the lightning Serena?” Scott asked as he came into view. “We have him but how do we get the suit off of him and contain it?” He asked.

Natalya saw what Logan did and as he glanced back at her she raised an eyebrow and gave him a look that said 'seriously?'. She stepped around him and over to Colossus. She switched from English to Russian and within seconds the two of them were laughing about something.

Serena was standing next to Gambit near the cage, although she continued to remain at somewhat of a distance. "I...I'm not sure. I think it might be more the sound. We can test this theory though." She switched the energy output on her suit to a sonic blast. She instructed everyone who wasn't in a protective suit to cover their ears. She then produced a sonic blast that shook the buildings around them and set off a few car alarms.

When she drew the sonic energy toward the cage Pete screamed in the alien’s voice. He covered his ears and he weighed in pain. It was horrible to watch as it appeared to be torturing him. The suit roiled and parts of his flesh was now visible.

“You’re killing him!” Tony said as Peter went onto all fours and howled on extreme pain. It was working but dreadfully slow.”Serena!” He said as everyone else appeared to be locked in fascination to why was happening.