Emma Joan Tallis

chapter fifty-eight: Nightmare Reality

I am Captain James Hook! I am no victim; I create them! I do not have bad dreams; I inspire them!

~ Heidi Schulz

~*~

"Natasha, I could really use a lullaby," Tony said as I sat with Steve. I didn't want to even try to get close to Thor, because I think I'd get electrocuted. 

"Well, that's not gonna happen. Not for a while," Clint told him. "The whole team is down, you got no backup here."

"I'm not down," I told Stark as I stood up. 

"Tallis, I'm calling in VERONICA," Tony said. "You have one minute to get outside and get picked up."

"Keep him safe," I told Clint as I started running. I was almost out of time when I made it outside, and was immediately scooped into the air by Tony's armor. "I hate this so much. I didn't think flying could be this bad."

"Sorry," Tony muttered as I dropped right next to him as the armor surrounded him. 

"I kinda wish I had some armor," I muttered.

"Should've let me make something cooler for you," Tony said as we faced off against the Hulk. 

"You know I can't do a lullaby," I told Tony.

"Can you try?"

"Probably die trying and enrage him even more." 

"Alright everybody, stand down!" Tony shouted, and I saw the very infuriated and irritated face of the Hulk. "You listening? That little witch is messing with your mind. You're stronger than her, you're smarter than her, you're Bruce Banner."

Hulk roared in absolute Fury, "bad idea," I told Tony as I pulled out my sword. 

"Right, right, right! Don't mention puny Banner," Stark said quickly as Hulk threw a car at him. 

"How am I supposed to help?!" I screamed at him.

"Stab him!" Tony screamed back.

"Give me a lift," I told Tony as I jumped up. Tony flew under me and rammed into Hulk, giving me the advantage of stabbing him in the arm. "Snap out of it!" I shouted at Hulk as I jumped off of VERONICA in time to not get crushed by a green arm. 

I winced as Hulk literally stabbed Tony in the back with a massive piece of metal. "In the back?" Tony asked as I tried to get people away from the chaos. "Dick move, Banner."

"I need some help, Em!" Tony shouted at me. 

"I need a better angle," I told him as I crawled up part of a building before jumping off of it and onto the Hulk sword first. He roared with anger and pain and thrashed around, I held onto the sword for a short while, but saw an opening and let go to swing under the rampaging maniac. "Well, my sword was in his back, if that makes you feel any better." 

"You know, it actually does," Tony said as he punched the Hulk in the face and sent him flying. Luckily, my sword was not with it, and it fell to the ground. "VERONICA, gimme a hand."

"Oh, he's angry," I said as I started running away from the Hulk as VERONICA replaced Stark's stabbed robotic arm just in time to connect a punch with Hulk's punch. "You have to be kidding me," I muttered as the shock wave sent everything, including myself, flying. 

I managed to get myself back up in time to see Stark repeatedly punching Hulk in the face. "Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep!" Hulk grabbed onto the robotic arm, but Tony used that to trap Hulk's hand and fly away with him. "Okay, pal, we're gonna get you out of town."