Web of Deception: The Webbed Avenger

Chapter Forty-seven: Liftoff

Stiles' P.O.V.

I woke up to the sound of the engines turning on, signalling that we were about to be air-bound.  An emptiness resounded in my heart as I sat up on the metal cot in my quarters, knowing that I was about to leave the very city I had grown in.  For three months at the very least I would not be seen by any of my family or friends while I trained with S.H.I.E.L.D. developing my abilities until I was at the level I needed to be to take on this mystery mastermind and his little band of crooks, which now has Derek in their ranks.

The mere mention of his name now brings me shivers as I remember his relentless assault that night in my home, and unconsciously I had reached down to the area on my torso where he had nearly gutted me.  I know he wasn't the one in control, but I can't help but be wary of our next encounter, what it might hold.

"Director Fury is on the bridge, preparing for liftoff.  You might want to see us take off from the best view." came the voice of Agent Coulson, poking his head in my door with a caring smile plastered on his face.  Coulson was the epitome of being that adult who stayed a kid at heart, seeing how he's obsessed with collecting Captain America cards.  Then again, I suppose he does have that dream job every little kid wants to have, being a super spy protecting people from super powered creeps.

I'm still a bit drowsy, as I had about two hours of sleep after leaving Lydia in the locker room at the school, but I manage to nod to Coulson and hop to my feet, stumbling slightly.  "What's the plan for this evening?" I ask sleepily, wiping my eyes.

Coulson gives a laugh as I follow him out of the room, grabbing my jacket on my way out.  "Tonight you're going to use your powers in a stealth scenario.  No web shooters are allowed."

"Really?" I couldn't believe it, since I started training I haven't even used my web shooters unless it was while I was on patrol.  "Why can't I use them?"

"In Director Fury's words, it's because you rely too much on your gadgets, and need to start being more of a hand to hand fighter.  Your fight with the Omega as we're calling him lacked finesse and because of it you were struggling against him.  That was why we were having the good doctor put you in a time loop with Agent Romanoff to give you some experience fighting."

"I think I did pretty well considering my lack of experience." I retort, holding a finger up in defense.

"But you wasted precious time that could have been spent rescuing injured officers and nearby civilians trapped in the area."

"Okay, I admit that could have went a lot better, but the Omega seemed stronger than the last time we fought.  He was holding back during our fight until the very end, and he nearly beat me because he caught me off guard."

Coulson didn't seem to acknowledge what I told him as we went up the lift to the deck.  The rest of the way up was silent, all while I rubbed my wrists noting the absence of my web shooters.  I had been wearing them so much that I now felt naked without them.  I've been having some ideas about how to make the web shooters a tad bit more incognito, so that way I could have them on all the time without being questioned about it.

Maybe I could make it retractable, or give it a double feature as a watch and such.  I have a lot of options I can utilize but I don't want to jump in on an idea until I know it'll work.  Who knows, maybe Fury would be kind enough to give me access to the lab to work on my design.  I nearly laughed at that, forcing me to cover my mouth so Coulson wouldn't look at me like I was insane.  The idea of Fury being a nice person made me laugh, because it would be way too ironic for someone with the last name Fury to be a gentle soul.