Enigmatic | Marvel's The Avengers

n i n e t e e n

SAFEGUARD

*****

Steve, Penny, and now joined by Thor continued to fight against the foreign creatures on the ground near Stark Tower. She combined both her combat skills and her enhanced abilities; her punches and kicks becoming twice as strong with each blow she landed. Suddenly a blast was shot, hitting Steve in the abdomen. Penny turns hearing his grunt and seeing him fall to the ground. She rushed over to him, kneeling to help him back up to his feet. A few feet up ahead, a group of Chitauri roared and began to charge at them. Penny glared in their direction and suddenly an abandoned vehicle nearby instantly flew toward the creatures, crashing into them, killing them on the spot.

"Come on." Penny told Steve as he stood to his feet, grasping his abdomen, wincing in pain.

Then Thor turned to the two heroes behind him. "Are you ready for another bout?"

"What, are you getting sleepy?" Steve joked, trying to push pass his pain.

"Sleepy and hungry." Penny truthfully answered. All this fighting was working up an appetite.

Steve nodded in agreement, accidentally patting her injured arm. She groaned, wincing in pain.

"Dammit, Steve!" Penny growled as she grasped her arm.

Steve's face dropped. "Sorry Penn. Stick it out for movie night."

"Movie night?" Thor asked curiously. "What is this evening you speak of?"

Penny smirked. "Movies, fast food, junk food, a D.J., kegs of beer, strippers-"

"WOAH-WHAT?" Steve's eyes widened as he turned his gaze onto Penny, who stood next to him with a smirk on her face.

"What is this D.J.?" Thor continued with his line of questions. "Is it a fine delicacy?"

"Beer and strippers?" Steve asked with a shocked expression on his face. "Isn't this Riley's house too?"

Penny chuckled. "Uh-I was joking, Steve."

Thor and Steve just stared at Penny, not finding any of the humor to their previous conversation.

"No? Not funny?" Penny asked the two, shrugging her shoulders.

"I still have much curiosity about this D.J. you speak of." Thor said, wanting answers to what a D.J. was.

Penny grins. "Well, when you turn 500 years old, I'll hire one for you. And if you pay them enough, they'll strip for you."

Steve shakes his head. "I-I don't think they do."

Penny just rolled her eyes, groaning in annoyance. "Why do I even bother?"

Suddenly Nat's voice came through the small transmitter in their ears. "I can close it! Can anybody copy? I can shut the portal down!"

The three heroes looked up at the portal, seeing more Chitauri coming through. There was no end in sight. This was the only way...

"Do it!" Steve said.

"No, wait!" They heard Tony's quick words through the communicator.

Penny furrowed her eyebrows. "Stark, these things are still coming."

"I got a nuke coming in," Tony replied. "It's gonna blow in less than a minute."

Penny, Steve, and Thor all met each other's concerned expressions. Deep down, Penny knew it could probably come down to this. It was either the Avengers handle the invasion or SHIELD would. But it wasn't Nick's doing... no, it most likely the work of the Council where she and Riley had to be extremely careful with. This made her ponder about what would happen now that her identity was revealed.