Reborn From The Void

Chapter 12 - Thunderbird

(Your POV):
"(Y/N)," Natasha spoke, bringing me out of my trance.

My head snapped up, "yes?"

It was in that moment that I realized that we had arrived at our destination and she was holding the elevator door open so that I could get out before the door closed. My cheeks heated up as I muttered, "oh, right. Sorry."

"You ok?" Natasha asked as a sheepishly followed her onto the floor.

I gave her a reassuring smile, something I had seemed to master while living a double life, "of course, my thoughts were just... elsewhere, I suppose. Where are we?"

"See for yourself," she replied, using her eyes on a retina scanner to open the door in front of us.

I stepped into the room and was immediately overwhelmed. It was a giant lab, filled with everything that my parents could ever have dreamed of. I had been impressed by the one they had going for them during H.A.M.M.E.R.'s time in the basement of Oscorp, but this was somehow even more impressive.

"Hey, Sparks," a voice spoke from within the labyrinth of machines. I turned to find Tony sitting at one of the stations, tinkering with something, which I assumed had to do with his Iron Man suit.

"Tony, did you-did you want to see me for something?" I asked, wondering why Natasha had brought me here.

He stood from his seat and nodded, "we have a surprise for you."

"Another surprise? Please tell me I'm not getting another floor, I don't think I'd know what to do with myself if that were the case."

He smirked, "nope, not another floor. But I think you'll like this just as much. Come here."

I hesitantly stepped away from Natasha and towards Tony, nervous for what he had in store. I hadn't understood a single thing that had happened to me today. First there was the freedom to use my powers, then the fear in Natasha's eyes, and now Tony wanted to give me something. Something was off and I was afraid of what that would mean for me.

However, as I approached Tony, I noticed what it was he wanted to give me. Standing up behind him was a suit, unfamiliar to me and clearly not meant for any of the Avengers. Which means it had to be-

"This isn't for me, is it?" I breathed, my heart stopping. They were giving me back my powers and giving me a suit, this couldn't be real.

"Well I don't know anyone else who it would be for," Tony replied sarcastically, taking it off its mount and tossing it to me. "Why don't you try it on?"

As the suit flew through the air, it compacted within itself, shrinking down so that when I caught it, it was a single silvery band, slightly thicker than the bangles that had restrained my power. I slipped the band onto my wrist and tapped the screen, wondering if that was what would trigger the suit to emerge. It seemed that I was correct because I soon became enveloped by the very suit that I had seen on display.

The suit's base was black kevlar, but it had silver plates that increased the efficiency of the armor. There was an electric blue tunic overlying the undershirt, matching the boots and hood of the same striking color. My first thought upon seeing it was that the blue was too bright. I would not be as efficient in a stealth mission with a suit this obvious. But I couldn't deny that I actually really liked it. It was incredibly comfortable and felt rather empowering.

"So, what do you think?" Tony inquired after a moment of me just admiring the suit.

I looked up at him and gave him a smile, "it's great, but I don't understand why you've given it to me."

"You're one of us now, you need a suit if you're going to fight. And nothing against your former suit, but that one does sort of paint you as a villain. I have to admit staring into the helmet was one of the most disconcerting feelings I've ever experienced and, trust me, that's a hard competition to win. This also means you're going to need a new name. I have a feeling that most people won't take kindly to you being one of the Avengers unless we completely rebrand you."

I nervously played with the ends of the sleeves, "I thought the public usually picks heroes' names. Like the press chooses something and it sticks."

"Not with you, we need to be careful of how we introduce you. You have the same powers as Void, obviously this is a different suit and part of your face is shown, which makes you less threatening while still concealing your identity, if you choose to do so. That should be enough to fool the press, but if we can ensure you get a new name that is completely unassociated with the Void as soon as possible, then there is less of a chance that the two of you will be connected," Tony explained, shocking me with how much thought he had put into it. This meant that this was not a rash decision, the Avengers were planning this, which meant they had to trust me. Of course that didn't explain Natasha in the training room, but it set my mind at ease at least a little.

"So, what did you have in mind?" I asked, bringing myself out of my thoughts.

"Well, our initial thought was something with a Phoenix, seems to match who you are, but unfortunately Electric Phoenix doesn't really have a solid ring to it. Keeping with mythological creatures, Thunderbird was thrown out, but they aren't really looked upon in the best of lights. So maybe something simple, like Voltage?"

I shook my head, "I actually kind of like Thunderbird. They have a threatening appearance and powers, but are often viewed as necessary in many Native American cultures, if I am not mistaken. I'll go with that one."

"You sure? Once we get this out, I don't think changing it is going to be an option," Tony double-checked, receiving a nod in response. "Alright, Nat's going to take you back to your room and brief you on the mission. I'll get ready to slip this reporters. If all goes well tonight, we'll have a new official member of the Avengers tomorrow."

The words tumbled out before I could stop them, "wait, you're sending me on a mission?"

"Yes, of course. You didn't think you'd be confined to this tower forever, did you? That's why Natasha tested you to see if you would try to escape knowing that your powers had been returned to you, we were just making sure that you were ready. It's not going to be a big mission and you will be accompanied by a handful of the Avengers, so don't think about double crossing us. But if all goes as planned, you will have the opportunity to prove yourself as an Avenger."

"Wait, you were just testing me in the training room? Does that mean you let me win?" I turned to Natasha, suddenly fearful that I had been played.

"I wish I could say yes, but you overpowered me. I should have anticipated you using your electric powers, but you seemed to be refraining from using them so I thought I was safe. I'll get you next time, though. Now are you coming or not?" She replied, already turning back to the elevator.

"Thanks for the suit, Tony, I really like it," I flashed him a smile before rushing to catch up to Natasha.

"Anytime, Sparks!" He called out after me just before the elevator doors opened and I disappeared inside.

As I entered my floor, my high from being accepted as part of the Avengers suddenly crashed upon seeing the pie I had made Peter sitting before me on the table in the sitting area, seemingly untouched. The elation I had felt, the hopes of finding a place where I could belong, it was all gone. Because the truth was that I was invading Peter's territory and he wanted me gone.

-

(A/N): Ooh your first mission is up next! Also, just want to clarify what the suit is compared the picture. It's essentially what's shown but instead of the crimson bits, it's actually electric blue (this was literally the only thing I felt like basing it off of that wasn't Lumiya's costume in Star Wars and she's lowkey a villain at that point so probably not the best choice). I hope you like it!