C431 Spider-Man (Patreon)

“He’s on the Red Room.” She says, getting confused looks all around. “It’s a giant airship facility that he can move anywhere he wants. Since he was here only a few hours ago, that means it’s nearby. I think it’s west of here.”

"Then we have to move fast if we want to catch him before he flies away," Peter stood up and waved his hand.

Melina nodded, eager to help. “I can guide you there, but I don’t think we’ll make it in time-”

Before she could finish, Peter opened several portals, each leading further and further to the west, looking for anything that wasn’t a clear sky. The group gathered around him, watching curiously.

"There it is," Melina whispered in shock, pointing at a distant cloud-covered tower-like structure, amazed by Peter’s magic. The Red Room was an imposing sight, a sinister testament to Dreykov's malevolence.

[Insert picture of the Red Room ship here]

Opening a portal inside the floating facility, they stepped through, arriving in a large hangar filled with much smaller aircrafts, which were probably used to ferry people on and off of the facility.

Before setting off to cause havoc, Peter opened a portal and dumped a pile of spray cans and smoke grenades onto the floor. "Remember, use the red dust antidote on the Widows instead of wasting your time. We can save them, so we should at least try. You have spray cans for close targets and grenades if they’re farther away or in a large group." Peter reminded the group as they snatched as much antidote as they could carry.

With a strategic plan in mind, they stormed the facility, moving as a synchronized unit. Peter made sure to neutralize all the aircrafts before leaving the Hangar, cutting off any escape routes for Dreykov and his subordinates. The Avengers struck with precision, their training and powers complementing each other seamlessly.

The facility echoed with the sounds of combat and alarms as they encountered Widows under Dreykov's control. Working in harmony, they used the smoke grenades and stray to administer the antidote to the affected Widows, freeing them from the mind control's grip.

As the Avengers pressed deeper into the Red Room, their hearts sank as they stumbled upon a group of young girls, huddled together in a dimly lit chamber. Fear and confusion etched on their innocent faces, these girls were mere children, aged between four and eight, far too young for a place like this.

Thankfully, they didn’t seem to be under Dreykovs mind control, and if they were, the red smoke that poured into the room from the hallway would’ve already taken care of it.

Natasha's heart ached at the sight, memories of her own past flooding back. She stepped forward, her gaze softening as she approached the frightened girls. "It's okay, you don't need to be scared. We're here to help you," she reassured them gently.

The young Widows in the making eyed Natasha warily, uncertain of her intentions. Their training had instilled a deep-rooted distrust for outsiders. One of the older girls, around eight years old, took a hesitant step forward, her small fists clenched.

"I'm not afraid of you!" she declared with a brave attempt at defiance, though her trembling voice betrayed her fear.

Natasha kneeled down to be at eye level with the girls, her tone soothing. "I know it's hard to trust us, but we're not here to hurt you. We want to help you."

Another young girl, around seven years old, piped up, her eyes glistening with tears. "Really? You'll take us away from here?” Tears started to roll down her cheeks. "I… I don’t like killing…”

Natasha nodded firmly. "Yes, I promise. You'll be safe with us. We'll bring you to a place where you can be just like regular children, okay?"

Seeing as they couldn’t stay here, Peter opened a shimmering portal behind them. "Come on, let's get you out of here," he said gently, gesturing for the girls to step through.

The little ones were hesitant at first, but Natasha's words had sparked a glimmer of hope in their young hearts. One by one, they cautiously approached the portal, taking a leap of faith into the unknown.

As the last girl stepped through, Peter could here a familiar voice called out from the other side. “What the hell! My workshop isn’t a daycare! Hey, you! Don’t touch that!,"

Ignoring Tony’s screams, Peter turned to the kids. “Alright girls, listen up. That’s your new uncle Tony over there. And he has more money than anyone else in the world, so don’t kill him or else he won’t be able to buy you stuff, okay? Bye.” He gave them a wave before snapping the portal shut, leaving Tony to the wolves.

With the young Widows safely transported to the Avengers Tower, the group could now continue their assault, knowing that Tony, who was less than thrilled to find a group of young female assassins dumped on his doorstep, would take care of them.

Or at least, he’ll give them to Pepper, who would most definitely take good care of them.

…

..

.

As they advanced through the Red Room, leaving a trail of dazed, yet freed, Widows in their wake, they eventually reached the heart of the facility. The tension intensified as they found Dreykov accompanied by an entourage of armed soldiers, with one figure shrouded in a mysterious blue and orange armor.

[Insert picture of Taskmaster here]

Peter's heart skipped a beat when he realized the armored figure was none other than Taskmaster, the mangled, brainwashed daughter of Dreykov himself. ‘I feel for her the most out of everyone here. Her father is a real d*ck.’ He thought, knowing that he could never do such a thing to Lily. It’s just unthinkable.

Determined to confront Dreykov, who stood surrounded by Russian soldiers, Natasha stepped forward, her eyes blazing with fury. "Where do you think you’re going?"

Dreykov sneered at the sight of her. "Ah, Natasha, how delightful to see you again…" But when he caught sight of Peter beside her, he suddenly smiled, putting up a fake persona. “Spider-Man, it’s an honor to meet you. I’m a very big fan!”

“?” Everyone raised an eyebrow at how quick his tune changed.

“Since you’re here, the I’m willing to surrender.” Dreykov offers, sweating nervously. “Surely, we can talk about this, can’t we? Maybe we can come to some sort of agreement? After all, the Red Room would be happy to assist the Avengers…”

With all of his Widows neutralized, besides Taskmaster, Dreykov only had his loyal soldiers. And Spider-Man was someone that even he didn’t have the confidence to beat. Peter’s powers were just too mysterious and unpredictable. One day he would be trapping his enemies in portals and another he could be shooting fire from his hands.

Dreykov continued, every word out of his mouth enraging Natasha further. “I wouldn’t mind bringing the Red Room under the Avengers banner… as long as I remain in control, of course. After all, I am the Red Room. It doesn’t exist without me…” He motioned to Natasha. “She knows this. That’s why she tried to kill me, the little traitor.”

Peter listened as Dreykov tried his best to weave his way out of the situation, finding it rather amusing. "Sorry, but I'm not interested in joining forces. I’m more of a take what I want kind of guy, you know? I mean, once you’re gone, all of this will belong to me anyway. So why should I bother with keeping you around?" He asked, smirking under his mask the whole time.

Enraged by Peter’s provocative words, a vein bulged on Dreykovs forehead. “Kill them!” He shouted as he turned to run down the hall.

With a gesture of his hand, Peter’s team rushed forward on his command. Natasha lead the charge, happy with Peter’s refusal. Together, they charged at Dreykovs remaining soldier, who did their best to follow orders. The room erupted into chaos as the Avengers and their allies took on the soldiers, steamrolling them rather quickly.

Taskmaster tried to do as her father said, but before she could even take a step, Peter appeared behind her tapped her on the head. “Sleep.” He whispered, sending a current of Eldritch energy into her, rendering her unconscious in an instant.

With Taskmaster and the other guards out of the way, all that was left was Dreykov, who made a desperate attempt to escape to the hangar. However, to his dismay, he found all his ships destroyed, courtesy of Peter Parker. Cornered and desperate, he turned back to face Natasha, his eyes filled with rage and fear.

"You can't stop me! I'll destroy you and everything you care about!" Dreykov snarled, lunging at Natasha with a wild swing. But before he could reach her, a strong hand grabbed his wrist, halting his attack mid-air.

It was Alexei, Natasha's father, and the Red Guardian. His eyes blazed with fury as he stared down at Dreykov. "You thought you could get away with all that you’ve done?" Alexei growled, tightening his grip on Dreykov's hand.

“Aargh!” Dreykov screamed as his wrist snapped.

"Betraying me, imprisoning me, enslaving my wife and daughter…" Alexei spoke, his grip growing stronger with every word. “And now you tried to touch my other daughter...”

With a swift and powerful punch, Alexei broke Dreykovs ribs, sending him crumbling to the floor, gasping for air. “… Wait! *Cough* …Don’t!”

Without even bending over, Alexei continued to unleash a barrage of blows, stomping his former friend into the hangar floor. Each blow was fueled by the years of suffering and torment Dreykov had inflicted upon him and his loved ones.

As the final blows landed, Dreykov was left a bloodied and broken man. Alexei’s super strength really did a number on him. His bones were broken, his body was covered in blood, and even his skull was caved in with a small, yet noticeable dent.

Peter watched in silence, knowing that this wasn’t his fight to interfere in, nor did her care to do so. After all, Dreykov was a man that kidnaps little girls and does god knows what with them. He might as well be on the same level as a pedophile in Peter’s eyes.

Finally, Alexei stood over Dreykov, panting heavily, but a sense of satisfaction in his eyes. "Piece of sh*t," he spat, turning away from the defeated man.

Natasha approached Alexei and silently pulled him into a hug, happy that this was all over. Yelena soon joined in, pulling a very out of place looking Melina along with her. Before anyone knew it, a big family hug was underway.

“Awe…” Ned found it very cute.

MJ nodded. “Yup, they’re like one big, happy, murdering family.”

“And you ruined the moment, thanks…” Ned sighed as he shook his head.

“It’s true though.” Peter said as he stood beside them.

…

..

.

With Dreykov defeated and the whole Red Room secured, the Avengers regrouped to form a game plan. All prisoners, including Dreykov have already been detained in the Tower, leaving only them and a large group of confused and free Widows trapped on the ship.

"We did it," Peter declared. "But now we need to figure out what to do with all of these trained assassins. Not to mention the ones that aren’t here. We’ll have to find a way to call them all back..."

Melina nodded. "I can do that. I know how the technology works. I can show you, if you want?" She offered her assistance.

“Yeah, sure.” Peter nodded in return. “Can you and Natasha work on calling them back. If you have to, we can send them to a specific location on the ground and I can portal them up here.”

“Yeah, we’ll take care of it.” Natasha said as she walked off with her mother.

When they were gone, Peter turned to Yelena. “Now for the more challenging part. Can you call all of the Widows to gather here in the hangar? We need to have an important talk.”

A/N: 2019 words :) Should Peter recruit the Widows into shield or make a new division under Natasha for them?