Bound By Purpose

Something to Protect

Since the ship is on it's own path there really isn't anything for us to do, except wait and pray. While Tony stays at the helm observing everything he can touch and Strange keeps to himself peering out into space, I take a seat on a step and hold my chin in my hands and just stare out into nothingness trying not to think of what's to come, praying that Bucky would somehow forgive me. As we go further into space I lose all sense of time. It could be minutes, it could be hours but eventually Peter approaches and drops himself right next to me. I don't know if he truly knows the extent of the danger we're headed towards. If he does he doesn't show it. 

"Tony wanted me to make sure you're okay." I can tell he's uncomfortable talking to me.

"Yeah I'm alright." I say trying to perk myself up a little bit. "We're a good group of rag tag heroes here... We're going to be just fine." In all honesty it wasn't me I was worried about. Putting my hands on my abdomen I take a deep breath and try to force all the tension out of me. I should tell someone. I shouldn't be here. I dart up and Peter looks at me with a strange, concerned look. I just about call out to Tony, but a planet comes into view. I stop myself and breathe. I'd survived a lot in my lifetime. I would survive this. We all would. I take another deep breath and feel someone grab my hand. Looking down I see that Peter, who is still sitting is looking up at me. He nods and I squeeze his hand reassuring him that I'm okay. 

"I think we're here." Strange says from the front. Peter lets go of my hand and we approach the front together. 

"I don't think this rig has a self-park function." Tony jokes. " Here... Get your hand into this steering gimbal. Close those around it. You understand?" Peter and I grab it together.

"We got it." I reply.

"This was meant for one big guy, so we gotta to move at the same time." Tony says. I slow my breathing and focus on my own world tuning out the screeching of the metal and the atmosphere pulling on the ship.

We come down onto the planet with relative ease but as we get closer I notice the destruction that litters the surface. I armor up, my helmet coming up over my face. "We might wanna turn. Turn! Turn! Turn!" Peter yells. I hear Tony and Peter armor up beside me. I close my eyes anticipating a very rough landing but the darkness of my eyelids ignites. I open my eyes to see we've been cocooned in a ball of gold. Looking to my right I see that the Doctor has cast a spell of sorts all around us. 

Peter once again grabs my hand as we impact the surface. The ship breaks apart as we crash through the landscape. Upon hitting the ground we're all tossed in different directions. I'm thrown forward. The momentum keeps me moving even when the ship has stopped. I curl up hands over my head waiting for the sounds to stop. 

I hear my name through the ringing of the crash. Opening my eyes Tony, now de-helmeted, offers me a hand. He hoists me up to my feet. I hold my arms across my chest feeling rather dizzy. "Tony." I call out, but he doesn't hear me. He's already turned to Strange.

"That was close. I owe you one." I take a step back trying to contain myself and refocus.

Peter slides down a web upside down. "Let me just say, if aliens wind up implanting eggs in my chest or something, and I end up eating you, I'm sorry."

Tony has turned to him now. "I don't wanna hear another single pop culture out of you for the rest of the trip. You understand?"

"I'm trying to say that... something is coming." A grenade of sorts rolls into my view then it explodes sending me careening backwards onto my back. The ringing returns and for a brief second I'm back in a foxhole in France. When I open my eyes it's not Dugan over me it's a black eyed woman with antenna. There's suddenly a lot of screaming.