The golden mask hides my grin as I sip apple juice through a bendy straw, my feet dangling off the high-top stool like a kid at the grown-ups' table. From this height, I can see all of Manhattan through the Baxter Building's floor-to-ceiling windows, a glittering wonderland of lights against the darkening evening sky. It still feels surreal that I'm actually sitting in the Fantastic Four's living quarters, casually hanging out with two of the most brilliant scientific minds on the planet.
Venom crushes her second beer can with one massive hand, the aluminum crumpling like tissue paper between her claws. The symbiote ripples with satisfaction across her imposing frame as she tosses the mangled remains into a recycling bin across the room. It lands with perfect accuracy.
"So..." Rita Richards leans forward, her stretchy arms folded on the kitchen counter as she studies me with that intense, analytical gaze that makes me feel like I'm being dissected. "You're aware of the Molecule Woman's existence."
"Yeah!" I nod enthusiastically, nearly choking on my juice. "Oh, and…" I stop abruptly suddenly to embarrassed to ask my next question.
Rita's eyebrows rise expectantly. "What?"
"No, it's nothing," I mutter, suddenly self-conscious.
Venom turns those blank white eyes toward me, somehow managing to look skeptical despite having no pupils. "Really?" Her dual-layered voice drips with disbelief.
"No, no," I insist, waving my hands dismissively.
With an annoyed sigh, Venom reaches over and deftly plucks my phone from my pocket, her massive claws surprisingly delicate as they navigate the touch screen. "He wants a picture with you," she explains to Rita and Susan, holding up the screen to display my camera app.
Susan's lips curl into a smile as her eyes travel over me, appraising in a way that makes me feel like I'm being cataloged alongside the other curiosities the Fantastic Four have encountered.
"Is that what you were going to ask?" Rita says, her neck extending slightly toward me with scientific curiosity. "A photo?"
"Well, yeah," I admit, rubbing the back of my neck beneath my mask. "I'm kind of a huge fan."
Venom makes a sound that's half-growl, half-laugh. "That's what he says about everyone," she rumbles, those milky eyes somehow managing to convey fondness and exasperation simultaneously. "In fact, he likes the D-listers more."
Susan laughs, the sound surprisingly warm coming from someone who's been eyeing us suspiciously since our arrival. "I don't mind taking a picture with him," she offers, sliding off her stool with graceful ease.
Before I can react, Venom's massive hand closes over my phone, tucking it back into my pocket. "Nah," she growls, her other arm wrapping possessively around my shoulders. "You're coming on too strong. He's taken."
The weight of her arm across my back sends a pleasant shiver down my spine despite my embarrassment. I can feel the symbiote bubbling slightly where it touches me, almost like it's purring.
Rita's eyebrows shoot up nearly to her hairline, her stretchy neck retracting as she exchanges a look with Susan that I can't quite decipher.
"Right," Rita says, clearing her throat. "About Molecule Woman. I'm afraid I can't help you locate her."
My heart sinks. "You can't? But I thought…"
"What my wife means," Susan interrupts smoothly, "is that we won't help you locate her. There's a difference." Her blue eyes narrow slightly. "Molecule Woman isn't someone to be trifled with. She has the power to reshape reality. She's too dangerous to treat casually. Why exactly are you looking for her?"
I fidget under Susan's intense gaze, trying to formulate my thoughts into something that doesn't sound completely insane.
"Well, the thing is..." I start, but I'm suddenly distracted by movement on a screen behind Rita. A news ticker scrolls beneath footage of Toni Stark entering a courthouse, her signature sunglasses firmly in place despite the winter weather.
My words trail off as I focus on the headline: "MULTIPLE MEN ACCUSE IRON WOMAN OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT."
"Wait, what?" I blurt out, pointing at the screen. "Men are accusing Iron Woman of sexual assault? That can't be right."
Everyone turns toward the television. The volume is muted, but the images tell enough of the story, Toni Stark looking uncharacteristically somber as photographers swarm around her, followed by footage of her photos with Jessie Epstein and Puff Mommy.
"With Toni Stark being a billionaire, I bet it's real," Venom growls, her massive form shifting with agitation. "The rich think they can take whatever they want."
I shake my head, unable to reconcile this news with the hero I grew up watching on the big screen. "I don't know... something in my gut says there's just no way Iron Woman would do that."
Rita watches the screen with unusual stillness. After a long moment, she sighs.
"I've known Toni a long time," she says quietly. "Since she donned her suit, she dropped her playboy persona. She keeps it up for the media, but even when she was drinking heavily, she was far more concerned with world safety than the petty desires of the flesh." Rita's brow furrows. "All these allegations are accusing her of assault after she became Iron Woman. If I had to guess, this must be an attack to destabilize the main financier of the Avengers."
My eyes widen beneath my mask. "Oh my God, do you think whoever leaked the photos is the same person masterminding these accusations?"
"I would assume so," Rita says grimly.
"That's fucking dark," I mutter, a chill running down my spine despite the room's comfortable temperature.
The news anchor's face grows more serious as the segment continues. I lean forward, squinting at the scrolling ticker beneath the footage.
"Looks like Twitter's on fire about this," I mutter. "The hashtag 'ToniMustGo' is trending worldwide."
Susan's expression darkens as she watches the screen. "If Toni gets pushed out of the Avengers, it could be a death sentence for the team. Her tech, her funding, they'd lose everything."
"But why isn't she fighting back harder?" I ask, gesturing at the screen where Toni looks uncharacteristically subdued. "The Iron Woman I know would be blasting these accusations to pieces."
Rita shakes her head. "I'm sure she is. She's probably working around the clock to identify who's behind this." Her fingers drum thoughtfully against the counter. "But she has to be careful, one wrong move could make her look more guilty. At least she's denying these new allegations."
"True," I concede, tearing my eyes away from the screen.
Susan sighs heavily, turning her attention back to me. "Anyway, back to you, Skip Step. What exactly do you want with Molecule Woman? You still haven't told us."
I straighten up on my stool, trying to look as serious and hero-like as possible. "Cosmic level protection."
Susan's eyebrows shoot up. "What could you possibly need that for?"
The question hangs in the air for exactly one second before an earth-shattering explosion rocks the entire building. The floor beneath my feet trembles violently, sending my apple juice flying across the counter. The windows rattle in their frames, and I nearly topple off my stool.
"What the hell was that?" I gasp, grabbing the counter to steady myself.
Rita moves with surprising speed, her arm extending behind her to pull out what looks like a sleek computer terminal hidden in the wall. Her fingers fly across the holographic keyboard, and a three-dimensional display materializes above the device.
"External security feeds," she explains tersely, manipulating the display to show the airspace outside the Baxter Building.
Hovering outside, suspended by some kind of antigravity technology, is a woman in a high-tech suit that looks like someone welded medieval armor to a fighter jet. Purple energy crackles around her gauntlets as she raises her arms toward the building.
"RITA RICHARDS!" The woman's voice booms through speakers, amplified to an almost painful level. "I HAVE BROUGHT A NUCLEAR WEAPON TO NEW YORK CITY! COME OUT AND FIGHT ME, OR I WILL WIPE THIS PLACE OFF THE MAP!"
"Is that the Wizard?" I ask.
Rita nods, already reaching for something on her belt. "Yes."
I stare at the display, watching the armored figure hovering outside. The Wizard is one of those villains who's always been on the periphery of my superhero knowledge, I know she exists, but she's never captured my imagination the way other baddies have.
Venom leans down, those massive blank eyes fixed on my face. "What? You want a picture with her too?"
"No," I say, shaking my head as I watch Rita transforming into her blue uniform with practiced speed. "I never really cared for the Wizard."
The building shudders again as another blast hits somewhere below us. The lights flicker ominously, and a high-pitched alarm begins to wail throughout the Baxter Building.
"Skip Step, Venom," Susan calls, already encased in her own uniform, a shimmering force field forming around her body, "we could use your help."
I glance at Ellie, who's already looking annoyed, the symbiote shifting across her form in anticipation of battle.
"We're in."