Avenging in July *Editing Before Continuing* [Avengers Fanfiction]

VIII | Fearing Fear Itself

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." -Franklin Delano Roosevelt

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I watch as the light in the eyes of the machine grows cold and dark. The slight hum of power starts to die as soon as I realize that the suit will go limp and will crush my fragile body underneath it. I quickly pull my wrists out of the metal hand and push on the chest as hard as I can before the suit goes too limp for my liking. It rolls over onto the floor next to me and makes a moderate CLINK on the tile. I breathe out and close my eyes.

Another prophecy? I thought I would never hear a single prophecy again! I prayed to the Gods for no more prophecies, and look what they gave me. I sigh. What did I do to deserve this?

"Alix!" I hear Natasha's voice and footsteps advancing. "Alix are you o-" She stops mid-sentence and in the middle of her step. I quickly open my eyes and turn onto my stomach to face her.

"Huh?" I ask, "What were you saying?" She doesn't say anything but looks at the ground next to me. I turn my own head and eventually lower it in shame. I hear footsteps again and shifting of clothes.

"Hey," Natasha whispers.

I look up to see her squatting next to me, her face shows concern. She bobs her head towards the still machine next to me. She wants me to open the face mask. I shake my head. That thing, whatever it was, is not grabbing me again. Natasha gives me a confused look and plops down on her butt with her legs crossed. She's not leaving until I try to open the face mask.

I sigh in defeat and sit up to face the machine before me. I reach my hands out but stop a mere two inches before the mask. I look to Natasha for reassurance. She nods her head for me to continue. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, turning my head the opposite way. Slowly I inch my hands forward until my finger tips meet cold, solid metal. I let out a heavy breath and slowly open both eyes. Nothing happened. I see Natasha give me a weird look but I shrug it off and continue.

I grab the bottom edges of the face plate and lift the metal up as hard as I can. Suddenly the the plate pops off to reveal Tony's bruised face. Just below his left eye is cut. My stomach drops at the sight and my hands go right to my face. I hear Natasha let out a small gasp.

"JARVIS," I say in a shaky breath, "How are his vitals?"

"Not sure, madam," the robotic voice informs, "Something is in the way."

"What?" I look to Natasha with a confused look, but her face mimics mine.

"I am not able to scan his body," says JARVIS, "The signal is being blocked by something."

"Can you open the suit?" I wonder out loud.

In response, the suit slowly creaks and hisses open. His body is not cut up, it may be bruised though. His chest slowly and shakily moves up and down. He's definitely been traumatized.

"Tony," my voice croaks out. I put a hand on his cold, sweaty forehead. At least he's alive.

"I'll go get a med-kit," Natasha says behind me. I nod and examine the suit.

Nothing on the suit's interior seems wrong from what I've seen in the past. I look to his arc reactor. The fabric of Tony's Black Sabbath T-shirt on and around the reactor is burned away. Is that normal? I slowly reach out and touch the reactor's rim.

ZAP!

The arc reactor shocks my finger tips, making me yelp and quickly recoil my hand, holding it tightly to my chest. At the same time, Tony jerks upright and snaps open his eyes, yelling in the process. I gasp and use my hands to scoot back from his outburst, but my right hand collapses on me and I fall on my arm. I still don't have feeling in my hand from the electric shock.