章 8: It Smells like a New Car in Here
(Avengers Tower)
(Elijah's POV)
Tony: "You must've already seen the common area. This is will be serving as the lounge, kitchen and dining area for your team. You don't have any housekeeping, so keep the place clean. I walk in here and see anyone's underwear on the couch, the whole team is getting an ass-whooping" He said, walking out into the massive room I saw when I stepped off the elevator. The view from the windows was amazing, to say the least.
"Yeah, I saw it. It's definitely impressive"
Tony: "I know it is, I helped design it, which is why if you and your team wreck it, I will end you. Moving on"
He then took me up another flight of stairs the opposite side of the ones that led to the lab. We walked down the hallway to some techno looking double doors at the end. The doors automatically slid open to reveal an extremely large, white room.
Tony: "This is the training center. This is a State-of-the-art hologram capable room for simulating mission situations for you and your team to train in. Word of advice: Don't break it. It is extremely expensive, and repairs will be coming out of your pay."
"Wait, we'll be getting paid?"
Tony: "Yeah, no shit, kid. If you're gonna be a full-time hero, you'll need to be able to put food on the table somehow. And trust me, your salary will be more than enough to put food on the table" He whispered the base salary to me, and my eyebrows shot up in surprise. The salary he suggested made the pay I was getting from SHIELD look like pocket money.
Tony: "The control center for the training simulations is up there, so someone will have to be up there to start it and be ready to emergency stop it, just in case something goes wrong" He started walking out of the room, and I quickly followed him.
Tony: "State-of-the-art gym over there, communal shower rooms for men there, women there, quick tip, don't drop the soap. Sauna and Jacuzzi there, all State-of-the-art, obviously"
"Obviously"
Tony: *smirking* "You've got a good sense of humour, kid. Thank god, this place is drowning in angst. Last thing I needed was the upgraded version, teen angst."
"Glad I could help, but no promises about the others"
Tony: "Yeah, how's that going, by the way? Found any kids going around in their pajamas fighting pickpockets?"
"So far, just one. But, she has a lot of potential. I watched her fight more than just a pickpocket, she was fighting some dude with arm gauntlets that shoot out pressurized pulses of air. She also jokes a lot while fighting, which I appreciate."
Tony: "Ah, you're talking about Spider-woman, huh?"
"You know her?"
Tony: "Not personally, but we know of her work. We were reviewing her as a potential candidate ourselves"
"Wait, you guys are looking for team members too?"
Tony: "Of course we are. We're the Avengers, putting together our successors is our job too. That being said, we're doing it on the down-low. Cap and Banner have no idea, Cap because we knew his morals wouldn't let him accept it, and Banner because he honestly doesn't care. But, now that you're here, seems like the cat's out of the bag. Well, it seems like Romanoff handled him, so he seems to be on board, at least partially"
He lead me down the stairs back to the common room before walking down a hallway connected to the common area. He stopped by one of the doors lining the sides of the hallway.
Tony: "This is the wing that has all of the team rooms. Who takes which room is up to all of you, play Rock-paper-scissors or something. Every room has the same size and layout, but you can personalize it if you want."
He opened the first door and walked in, and I followed him. The room was spacious, had a comfortable looking bed, desk, closet and had a washroom with a sink and toilet. It had the same futuristic tech look as the rest of the place. Every door in this place looked straight out of some sci-fi movie.
Tony: "Alright, that's about everything. You can move in tomorrow"
"Huh? But we haven't even put the team together yet"
Tony: "You can move in now, and they can move in later when we recruit them. Or, you can move in later with them. It's up to you, kid."
As I was thinking about whether to move in or not, my phone pinged, signaling a new message. I pulled it out to take a look, and saw a message from Gwen.
Gwen: "Hey, you wanna walk to school together tomorrow? Since we live pretty close, it'd be better than walking alone."
I looked down at the message and chuckled.
"Thank you for the offer, Mr. Stark, but I think I'm good for now. I'll move in when the rest of the team does"
Tony: "Hm. Well, at least that means one less house-warming party. Alright, your suit should be just about done by now, let's get back to the lab."
As he left the room, I went back on my phone and replied to Gwen.
"That desperate to see me already? Sounds fun, see you tomorrow. Same place we separated today?"
Gwen: "Well, now that you're acting so full of yourself I'm not sure if i wanna do it anymore."
I chuckle and respond before putting my phone away and following Tony out.
"Whatever you say. See you tomorrow, I'll be there around 8"
We walk back into the lab to see Steve and Natasha talking about something. Once they noticed us, they ended their conversation and Natasha turned to speak to me.
Widow: "Your suit's done. Go ahead and put it on, give us a little fashion show" She said, smirking teasingly.
"You kidding? A fashion show from a model like me is expensive"
I walked up to the fabricator and pulled out my new suit. The quality was perfect. Say what you want about the man himself, you can't deny how good Stark Industries' products are.
I put on the suit and helmet and carefully adjusted my body, testing how much freedom of movement it allowed me.
Widow: "How does it feel?"
*smirking* "As good as it looks"
Oh, yeah. I think I can get used to this suit.
End of Chapter 8~
Hey there! I wanted to clear up some misunderstandings. Firstly, this Black Widow isn't some psychopathic spy. She has no ulterior motives to get Elijah to become a hero. She has been a hero herself for a while, and is also still a SHIELD agent, but doesn't really do any missions for them anymore. Second, the reason Elijah was so ready to give up the life of an assassin and become a hero is because, and I can't stress this enough, he is 17. He does not like killing. He does it because he has no other choice, he can't disobey orders. He isn't some stone cold killer. Yes, he will kill if he feels it is the only way to keep people safe, but he takes no pleasure in it. He was in a dark place, and Widow gave him a light in the darkness. A way to work towards forgiveness for the sins that weigh on his conscience every day. What I'm trying to portray in this book is a young child that was forced to be an assassin, who feels guilt about his actions, and the story of his path to redemption, while finding people who genuinely care about him.
I'm sorry if I wasn't conveying this properly in the book itself, so i thought i'd mention it here.
Thank you for reading the chapter, I know nothing really happened in this one, but it was more for world building. See you in the next one!
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