A Different World

Touring the base

Lorena sat in silence after Peter asked her about how she became a hero. Her story wasn't much to tell but that wasn't why she was resistant in telling him.

She was still hurting, she could not bring herself to open up to this Peter in front of her when she knew that her Peter was dead.

"It... doesn't matter." She muttered out.

Peter was quiet after she spoke, he knew she was in pain and he wasn't helping much. In fact he would guess he was responsible for her present pain, he didn't know how long ago his other self had passed but regardless of that time seeing him standing here... that's what hurt the most.

Lorena stood up from her seat and excused herself as she left the room, Alice followed quickly behind her not wishing to be in the same room as him and wanting to be beside her mother.

Peter was visibly disheartened by this but he wasn't surprised by it. Both of their reactions were valid and... he assumed they would do so anyway. Lorena was saddened during the whole thing, so she would be reluctant in opening whereas Alice showed nothing but, what Peter guessed was, disdain or outright hatred towards him and didn't want to be near him.

They all looked saddened by her departure but it was something they understood and weren't going to hold her accountable for it.

"She... was a librarian. She loved to read and wanted others to enjoy it as-well. You can guess what her favourite book is?" Felicia spoke up.

"I'm gonna go with Alice in Wonderland." Peter replied with slight amusement.

"Yeah." She chuckled.

"Anyway. After the Avengers wrecked that part of town a lot of people didn't want to leave their homes. She had to close down but was caught up in an attack when she was trying to help out some kids who went outside alone, we got their just in time and she saw what we were doing and asked to help. She joined us and Otto and Janice helped her make her gadgets." Felicia explained.

"I see. And... what about Alice?" Peter asked.

Felicia was hesitant to answer as it was a sensitive subject and something she wasn't sure she should talk about. Or at the very least, she shouldn't be the one to talk about it.

"I... don't think I, should be the one to talk to you about Alice. Just be patient, and I'm sure Lorena will come around." Felicia finally answered.

Peter wasn't comforted by her answer but decided to let it go.

"So. What do I do now?" Peter asked defeatedly.

No one knew how to answer his question, they had an idea in how to get him back home but they had nowhere to start. They needed to find their worlds version of the tablet, if it even exists, and try to recreate the spell that sent him here and get Peter back to his own world.

"Why don't we get you settles in somewhere for now. If you're going to be here for a while you might as well get comfortable. Come with us." Otto said standing up.

Peter left with Otto and Felicia who escorted him through the facility to where he would be sleeping.

"So... is this where the other me slept?" He curiously asked them.

"N-no. You and Lorena shared a room. This is a spare room." Felicia responded.

"Oh." He said sadly.

They continued through the facility until they reached their destination, Otto and Felicia waited outside the door as Peter went inside and made himself comfortable.

Inside the room their was a single bed with a nightstand beside it, a closet that was empty and an adjoining bathroom that had a shower. It wasn't large but certainly not small by any means, it was larger than his old apartment.

He sat on the bed to see how comfortable it was and was surprised by how it felt, laying down Peter felt relaxed and comfortable by the soft fabric on the bed and for the briefest of moments he felt at peace.

He quickly got up and returned to Otto and Felicia.

"So? Everything alright in their?" Felicia questioned.

"Yea it's all good. Is there anything else you want to show me around the facility?" He replied.

Felicia and Otto led him around the base so he could be familiar with its layout and move about freely.

They started with the living quarters as they were already there and led him through to were everyone was stationed. He remarked that there weren't a lot of people staying there but was quickly corrected when they explained that this was one of many bases they had among other groups they work with.

Everyone he's met aside from Doom stayed in this base while others were stationed around the city or even the globe. What surprised him most was that each base was in communication with each other, something his worlds heroes never did.

He was taken back to the common area where he sat with everyone before and he was shown the kitchen lest he need to eat or make something himself.

Swiftly moving on he was shown the training room and his eyes widened at the vast equipment that allowed for a variable of training exercises. An entire section dedicated for aerial combat, a large gun range to try out weapons, crash mats and arenas for martial arts and hand to hand combat and a virtual reality arena for simulated fights for a wide range of situations.

Otto informed him that training was something they did regularly so that they can be better and work together but in teams, once again showing the difference in both worlds.

The final area he was shown was Ottos lab, he was in there twice but never got a good look around to see what was what. And just like in the training room Peters jaw dropped at the vast technology present he could have a field day in this room alone just to get familiar with each device before he started to tinker with them himself.

Otto chuckled at seeing him almost star struck in the lab, evidently this Peter was also keen on science and technology, he fondly remembers working with their worlds Peter on different projects and advancing technology for the better. They were joyous times, even with the hell the Avengers were bringing.

Felicia however groaned slightly at his childlike astonishment with the big fancy lab and very dangerous toys for him to play with. She recalls moments when Peter would be so caught up in his sciency talk it was like everything else faded away, she never really understood what he was saying but with how excited and enthusiastic he was talking about it it never failed to make her smile and gawk at him.