Before the Storm
"Wandaaaa!" Kamala shouted as she ran for her life, before clinging to Wanda's leg like a koala, squeezing with all her strength. Tears streamed uncontrollably down her face.
Before Wanda could even ask what was going on, Owen walked in with a slightly annoyed expression, as if he already knew exactly what was happening.
"It's the demon!" Kamala yelled when she saw him, hiding even more behind Wanda's leg. Just moments ago, Owen had been her favorite hero; he had even saved her from the evil police officers. But now, in her eyes, he had turned into a villain.
"Stop wasting time and get back to your training," Owen said calmly as he walked closer. Without giving her any chance to escape, he grabbed her like a small kitten and lifted her effortlessly. Kamala immediately began flailing her arms and legs in desperation, trying to break free.
"No!" she protested while squirming nonstop.
"No?" Owen repeated, staring at her with a half smile that never reached his eyes.
Kamala trembled for a moment, then quickly crossed her arms, trying to look resolute. "I don't want to," she said, even as she was still being held by the back of her neck.
"It doesn't matter if you don't want to. If you want to use your powers and have them actually be useful, you have to train," Owen replied, tucking her under his arm and carrying her off like a sack. In absolute protest, Kamala let her body go completely limp, arms and legs dangling uselessly as she repeated in a pitiful voice, "I don't want to."
"If you finish today's training, I'll buy you whatever you want," Owen said, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.
That was enough. Kamala's body instantly snapped back to life, as if she had been revived in a single second.
"Really?" she asked, her eyes shining with excitement. "Even a suit as cool as Peter's?"
Owen looked at her in silence for a few seconds. "Only if you finish the training," he replied, before continuing to walk in the same direction they had come from.
"Awesome!" Kamala said, now much more animated as she wiggled under Owen's arm.
Meanwhile, Wanda, who had been nothing more than a spectator from the start, could not help but smile as she watched them disappear again, like a small, passing storm.
"They're so cute… It makes me want to have at least four kids for Owen. That way the old man will stop bothering handsome, kind Nicolas. I feel like he deserves a break to go out partying with girls…"
"What are you doing?" Wanda said, turning her head with an annoyed expression toward the voice that was trying to imitate hers.
There was Nicolas, half peeking through the door, with Pietro beside him. Both of them looked like they were having fun messing around.
Even as adults, it seemed they would never truly grow up.
"Come on, don't tell me you weren't thinking about it," Nicolas said as he stopped hiding and walked in with an amused smile.
"To be honest, I wouldn't mind the idea, little sister. Having a nephew, or two, calling me uncle would be fun," Pietro added, moving in a flash of speed to Wanda's side and placing a hand on her shoulder as if approving the thought.
"Besides, it's two birds with one stone. Owen gets a kid, and the old man stops pestering me about getting married and starting a family," Nicolas said as he took position on her other side. The two of them looked like an angel and a demon, except that both clearly wanted to tempt Wanda into sin. Although, considering that a child is a blessing, maybe they were not demons but angels. Then again, that was highly unlikely with those two, since they were clearly doing it just for their own amusement.
"Think about it, little sister," Pietro said, raising his hand and moving it gently, as if calling upon her imagination. "A little cutie that looks like you, calling you mommy and running after Owen calling him daddy. Or a tiny mini Owen, always glued to your legs, with the same serious face as his father."
Even Wanda, at that moment, seemed to be imagining it, as if she were being slowly tempted.
"Growing up little by little, going on family outings, telling them bedtime stories, taking them to school…" Pietro said softly, with a faint smile.
"And before you even realize it, you're at their wedding, watching them get married and start their own family," Nicolas added.
"Wait, I think that part was a bit rushed." Pietro looked at Nicolas with obvious confusion.
"You think so?" Nicolas replied.
That snapped Wanda out of her small daydream.
"All right, stop bothering me with your crazy ideas. We have a lot to prepare, so you'd better not waste time," she said before walking away at a quick pace. Even so, for a brief moment, both of them noticed how her gaze drifted slightly, her lips curved in a smile, as if she were still imagining something.
Nicolas and Pietro bumped fists, as if they had accomplished something important, before disappearing, satisfied, as though their mission had been successfully completed.
…
Meanwhile, in the training center prepared by Tony, located beneath V.I.T.A.E., it was immediately clear that he had invested an enormous amount of money into its construction. The machines surrounding the area were so advanced and so expensive that, realistically, not even the military should have access to technology like this.
There was even machinery designed specifically for Owen, as if Tony had always known that he would return and eventually need to train again.
Owen stood in front of what looked like a control room, a massive chamber with a large transparent mirror that allowed a clear view of its interior. There, at the center, was Peter Parker, facing off against drones that emerged from every direction and fired relentlessly at him. At times, those same drones suddenly vanished, as if they had turned invisible.
Peter reacted quickly, jumping backward or to the sides, dodging invisible attacks that struck exactly where he had been standing just a second earlier. Owen watched him for a moment before shifting his gaze to the control panel in front of him and pressing a button.
Instantly, all the drones became invisible at the same time.
Peter began jumping around with even greater speed. Wherever he had just been standing, scorch marks from laser blasts appeared on the floor and walls. Still, it did not take long before he started getting hit, the lasers lightly burning his suit.
"Ow, ow, ow! I give up, I give up!" Peter shouted as more lasers scorched his backside.
That was enough for Owen to shut the machine down. The drones slowly reappeared.
"Rest for five minutes and then try again. Today, you need to last at least ten minutes without getting hit," Owen said as he pressed a button so his voice would carry into the chamber.
"What? Ten?!" Peter said in alarm. "Mr. Owen, I think my aunt is—"
Before Peter could finish his excuse, Owen simply cut the audio so he would not have to listen anymore. He then turned his head to look behind him.
There was Kamala, sitting on the floor, her face completely red from the effort. Both of her hands were raised, straining as she tried to create several platforms in the air and keep them stable without letting them disappear. Slowly, another one began to form.
There were at least five platforms already created, and the sixth was nearly halfway complete.
Her small, puffed-up, reddened cheeks made her look somewhat funny, contrasting sharply with the absolute concentration on her face. Owen approached quietly and poked one of her cheeks.
Kamala jerked her head in surprise and lost her focus. The platforms vanished instantly in small bursts of sparkling energy.
"Ahh!" she shouted as she realized what had happened.
"You have to start over," Owen said with a small, amused smile, clearly enjoying messing with her.
"Mr. Owen is a villain," she protested, crossing her arms for a moment.
"You said you want to walk through the sky with them. If you cannot create enough, you could fall from a great height. And if you lose your concentration, they would not even be able to support you," Owen replied, his expression turning serious.
That made Kamala look at him in silence for a few seconds before she raised her hands again and began forming the platforms once more.
And so, the following days passed slowly, at least inside V.I.T.A.E., while outside, many problems were beginning to surface. Especially with the government and the law that was about to be voted on regarding superhuman registration.
Meanwhile, Owen and his group waited for the right moment to put the plan into motion.