Chapter 26 -Testing...

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"Thanks for your help out there. I'll have the Pym Particles you need transported to the Chimera," Dr. Pym said. We were on our way back after the defeat of the Warbots and the Liberation of the Ant Hill. We were all a little beat up, but it was nothing some time and bandages couldn't fix. 

"Thanks, Doc," Tony said.

 "I know you won't listen, but I'll say it anyway. Be careful," He said.

"I'll do my best,"

-

"Here are the particles Dr. Pym promised. Good luck, Iron Man," Theo said, passing me a bag.

 "Thanks. I'm uh...gonna need it," Dr. Pym ended the call, his hologram disappearing.

 "So what exactly is this Starboost thing?" I asked, curious. 

"Meet me in the tech lab, kid, and see for yourself," He said. 

"You got one hell of a mission ahead, Tony," Ms. Romanoff said.

"Only one anxiety attack confident. Pretty sure everything's tuned to perfection," He said. 

"Uh, pretty sure?" She asked. 

"Sorry, that came out wrong. What I meant to say is: everything's gonna be fine. Thanks for worrying, Nat," He said. 

"You know, if it helps, I can come with you," I said.

 "Uh, no. That's impossible. You'd die in an instant," Dr. Banner said.

"You're talking to someone who shares their conscience with a shadow demon. Nothing's impossible," I responded.

 "You'd still freeze to death in the vacuum of space," He pointed out.

 "Did you not hear what I said? Shadow demon. SHE doesn't operate like a normal person, and she can survive in space. I know, she told me once," I said. 

"I'd say let's give it a shot. Two heads are better than one," Tony said.

 "Fine," Dr. Banner relented.

"Can't believe we're doing this. Thanks for reviewing those schematics, by the way," Tony said to the doctor.

 "My pleasure. Would hate to see you go up in smoke," He responded.

 "If I do, I'll try to blow up out of sight and off the comms," Tony said.

 "Stay safe, Tony," He said. I followed Stark to the technology lab.

"Every test I did before ended...badly. But, with this new miniaturized accelerator, I have a shot," He told himself. "You sure you can do this?" He asked me.

 "Honestly, I'm not sure of anything anymore. But, as bad as my and SHE's relationship is, she'd never lie to me. Especially about something like this," I said. 

"Why?" He asked.

 "If I die, she goes with me. Our minds, body, and life are interlinked. If one of us goes down, both of us do," I said as he pulled on a handle to reveal a sweet-looking Iron Man suit.

"That looks awesome," Kamala exclaimed. 

"Because it IS awesome. 1.4 billion dollar vanity project. I may incinerate on take-off, but I'll look damn good doing it,"

-

"Ahmi, can I talk to you?" I turned to see Dr. Banner standing in the doorway. 

"Sure. What is it?" I asked. 

"Please, please be safe. After Cap and Snake...I don't want to be responsible for any more deaths," He said, and I turned to him.

 "If I die, it'd be on my head, not yours. What happened to me isn't your fault, it isn't anyone's fault. In fact, it helped me," I said.

 "Helped you? You're scared of your powers, Ahmi," He said. I smiled, shaking my head.

"Ever since Golden Acres, when SHE and I finally realized we could do good together, I'm not scared of my powers anymore. I used to see her as a curse, but now I know that...maybe this was my destiny. Maybe I was always meant to be this way. Being scared never helped anybody. I learned that when Kamala was getting overrun by AIM bots and I couldn't do anything because I was scared of going feral," I admitted. 

"I mean, of all the people who should understand, it would be you, right? I mean, you have the Hulk," I pointed out. 

"You're right. Just be careful. Please," He said. 

"I will. I promise,"

-

"All systems are in the green. But I must warn you, a large storm system has moved into your direct flight path," JARVIS said. 

"Never rains, but it pours. Well, we can't wait any longer. Kid, hop on," Tony knelt, and I wrapped my arms securely around his neck, hooking my feet together in front of his stomach. 

We had decided it was easiest if Tony flew the both of us up, and I could hop off when we reached Ambrosia

"Tony! I loaded up some music to give you a little boost," Kamala said over comms.

 "Oh, no," Tony sighed.

"Don't worry, it's not mine. You can do this!" Kamala said.

 "Thanks, kiddo," Tony's helmet lowered, and I let SHE take control. 

"Okay. Three...two...one!" We shot into the air, and my grip got way tighter. 

"Woohoo! Yeah!" Tony exclaimed as Iron Maiden's Flight of Icarus started playing. 

"Tony! You're flying right into the storm system!" Kamala said.

"I see it, kid! But there's no turning back now! Hang on, Ahmi!" We were struggling to stay on course, and a bolt of lightning hit the suit, giving SHE a zap. 

"Damn it! Looks like that storm fried my systems! Kamala, JARVIS, you still there? Guys, my system's starting to short out! JARVIS? Kamala?! JARVIS, I'm on fire! Eject booster! Gotta do it manually!" We flipped around a couple of times, making SHE and I feel woozy, but we were okay.

 "Wooo! Close call! Oooh, shi--" We slammed into a satellite arm. Eventually, Tony pulled us inside and I let go as the hatch close. 

"Come on, SHE, give me control," I said as the black stuck around in my skin.

"No! You always get to be the hero! It's my turn!" SHE shouted. 

"Please, SHE. You are a hero. You saved my life," I begged.

 "Only because I would die too," She said. 

"SHE, I'm begging you. Please, give me back control. Look, I know we don't get along. But, like it or not, we're stuck with each other. And life would be so much easier if we worked together. I don't want to fight you, I really don't. Just, please, give me the reigns, and when we get back to Earth, we can work something out and find a middle ground," I said.

 The pigment faded from my skin, SHE sucking back to wherever she normally stayed. "Thanks, SHE," I said, looking at Tony. 

"What just happened?" He asked. I smiled at him.

"We're finally going to get along,"

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