221. Duty's Burden. (Patreon)

Natasha Romanoff POV:

“White Widow, huh?”

Yelena tilted her head while the medical drone hovered over her face.

“I like it.”

Her tone carried a strange mix of pride and amusement. We were sitting in a medical prep chamber deep within the underground levels of Parker Industries headquarters. The sterile lights glowed overhead as precise injections of concentrated Red Dust were administered around our olfactory nerves.

It was the cure to the Red Room’s chemical leash.

A small mechanical arm made another injection into my nasal cavity.

Across the room, Clint sat on a bench, quietly inspecting his bow.

“Also,” Yelena continued while rubbing her nose, “that shield slam your Captain did earlier… No wonder he’s Captain America.” She scoffed lightly. “And no wonder Alexei Shostakov spent half his life claiming to be that man’s equal.”

“Everyone has delusions of grandeur.” I replied while smirking. “Especially men who used to have their own line of Soviet toys.”

Clint chuckled from across the room.

“Speaking of maintenance,” he said casually while loading arrows into a quiver freshly printed by a molecular fabricator beside him, “even before missions you gals need Botox shots. Pretty faces aren’t bulletproof, Nat and Nat’s little sis.”

Yelena rolled her eyes. “Careful, archer man, I might shoot you by accident.”

Clint grinned, “Wouldn’t be the first time someone tried and missed.”

At that moment the door slid open and Peter stepped inside carrying a long black case and behind him walked Steve with his usual calm and silent demeanor, his shield attached to his back.

Peter stopped beside Clint and placed the case on the table and opened it. “Clint, this is for you.”

Inside rested a bow.

Clint blinked.

“Uh…” He scratched his head. “It’s… a nice bow?”

Peter looked pleased. “You’re confused about it's purpose. Then I succeeded."

Before Clint could react, Peter grabbed the weapon and pulled the string back.

The bow suddenly ignited with glowing blue lines while energy hummed through the bow.

Peter released the string and a blinding streak of blue light crossed the room. After a few seconds the wall exploded with a circular scorch mark.

Clint slowly turned his head.

“Okay,” he said carefully. “That’s not a normal bow.”

Peter placed it gently into Clint’s hands. “Experimental Hardlight Bow. One of the many excess nicknacks that comes out of R&D all the time.”

He tapped the energy core embedded in the grip. “Powered by recyclo clips containing Baddasium cores, safer in your hands than a miniature Vacuum Siphon Core.”

Clint blinked. “Comforting.”

Peter continued, “It concentrates photons into a solid mass and fires them at approximately ninety-six percent the speed of light.”

Clint stared at the bow. “Peter.”

“Yes?”

“You gave me a lightsaber bow.”

“Technically it’s a relativistic photon accelerator.” Said Peter.

Clint slipped on the Ray-Ban shades Peter handed him and his mouth fell open. “Holy...”

He turned his head slowly. “I thought everything would look purple but this is crystal clear and there's no blind spots from the frames.”

He zoomed his vision. “Telescopic zoom! Microscopic zoom?!”

Peter nodded casually. “Night vision, telescopic zoom, microscopic zoom and experimental Promethean Vision Scope.”

Clint lowered the glasses, “You built me god glasses?”

Peter shrugged. “Also serves as the hardlight arrow type selector.”

Yelena leaned against the table. “So basically, you gave the man a war crime.”

Peter smiled faintly, "It's not a warcrime the first time."

He tapped the table, “Though I should clarify something. While the core technologies are mine but the refinement was done by interns.”

Clint raised an eyebrow. “You’re telling me a bunch of interns built this?”

Peter nodded. “Division heads used to ignored them and their ideas. So, I gave them funding, lab space and freedom.”

Yelena smirked. “You mean a shiny sweatshop.”

I elbowed her ribs.

Peter blinked. “I feed them, I pay them well, I house them. I’m a good masa.”

We all stared at him then Yelena laughed. “Sorry.” She raised her hands. “I imagined the usual billionaire. All bark, no bite.”

She pointed at Peter’s glowing spine. “But a guy with a glowing spine clearly isn’t normal rich.”

Peter chuckled and then he walked toward a hidden wall panel. He pressed a segment and the wall opened, revealing a wardrobe of tactical suits and one Captain America suit. WW2 style.

I smirked.“Aw, so you do love me.”

Peter raised an eyebrow. “You do know Gwen could literally rip you in half.”

I shrugged. “Gwen would understand the joke.”

Then my tone shifted. “Peter, why trust me now?”

He didn’t hesitate. “I always trusted you, I just didn’t trust your position.”

He leaned against the wall. “You were placed in the Avengers by Nick Fury as a spy, the beauty glue and the observer. But you never leaked Tony's tech. Much. You even protected it but I'm paranoid. So, I kept you at arm’s length and I'm sorry for that."

Silence hung between us and then he gestured at the suits. “Vibranium-S and a newly discovered metal from South Africa. We’re calling it Adamantium which is virtually indestructible. They’re woven together at the molecular level using a process called Sempiternal Weave. Yes, I own Warhammer 40,000, Age of Sigmar and all other titles related to GW. I even own GW.”

Yelena folded her arms. “Rich guy buys everything he wants and whines about women shopping.”

Peter smirked. “I’m not just some rich guy,”

He spread his arms. “I’m THE rich guy.” Then his voice softened. “And my purchases generate income. Also my wife has full access to my wealth and I believe in her.”

Yelena absentmindedly rubbed her stomach. My stomach dropped. Because we both knew what that gesture meant. The Red Room had taken that possibility from us. Forever.

Peter noticed and his voice became gentle.

“FYI, I can regrow organs. I invented organ printing and regenerative serums years ago. Has been available to the public for years. The rescued Widows will have the option to reclaim what they lost.”

Yelena whimpered and before I could react she wrapped Peter in a tight hug.

“You do your Uncle Ben proud.” She whispered.

Peter looked startled then he gently pried her arms off. “That’s all I ever wanted.... among other things.”

Then he straightened. “Everyone get ready, we leave in an hour.”

He walked out and Yelena immediately sprinted toward the wardrobe, “I call dibs on the black one!”

I chased her. “Over my dead body!”

Peter Parker POV:

The podium stood in the center of the main assembly hall. Thousands of employees watched from across the globe while camera drones hovered in perfect formation.

My speech was being broadcast worldwide.

I took a breath. “Greetings, my name is Peter Parker. Founder and CEO of Parker Industries. Thirteen years ago, Parker Industries began as a small defense startup called Parker Defense Solutions. Our goal was simple. To ensure humanity’s survival against threats both planetary and cosmic but today we are something else entirely. We are innovators, explorers, protectors and occasionally…peacekeepers.”

The world watched silently.

“But today…” I folded my hands behind my back.

“For the first time since our founding… Parker Industries will engage in full-scale war. This war is not born from ambition nor from conquest. It is born from obligation.”

Images of Red Room facilities, Widow training footage appeared behind me.

“For decades, the Red Room has abducted young girls across the world. They were sterilized, brainwashed, turned into assassins, their lives stolen, their humanity erased through chemicals and the Russian Federation allowed it. General Dreykov, the one in charge of the project built an empire upon their suffering. Therefore Parker Industries, alongside Wakanda, will immediately withdraw all technological and infrastructure support from Russia. Humanitarian aid will continue.”

Nick Fury POV:

The room was silent while I watched the broadcast from a S.H.I.E.L.D command room.

The world had underestimated Peter Parker gravely.

To cripple the nuclear triad of a permanent UN Security Council member nation overnight… no not overnight, in a span of hours.

That wasn’t a display of power, that was dominance. Every Russian weapons system had been fried by an EMP cascade. Satellites, missiles, radar networks all gone.

Russian nuclear submarines were already being towed into custody by Parker naval drones.

Russia had become a giant sitting duck.

“Sir,” Maria Hill stood beside me. “All NATO allies have imposed sanctions. Taiwan has embargoed all TSMC exports to Russia.”

She continued reading the report. “Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen have severed diplomatic ties with Russia.”

I sighed. Those countries used to be synonymous with instability. Now they were thriving because their citizens had invited Parker Industries to rebuild them and Parker hadn’t failed.

I watched footage of Parker Industries war flags flying across facilities worldwide.

A double-headed eagle holding symbols of the Army, Navy, Air and Space military branches.

I rubbed my tired eyes.

“Do not fear the conqueror who rides a chariot of war,” I muttered. “Fear the conqueror who wins the hearts and minds of the people.”

Hill looked up. “Who said that, sir?”

I stared at the screen. “Me.”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out the pager.

The small device blinked quietly.

I pressed the button.

“Hope she’s enough,” I muttered under my breath. “To be a deterrent.”