Daily Bugle

May 20, 2014

The doorbell rang, interrupting my story. Mahmoud looked over at the door, getting up to get it. I stopped him.

"I got it, babe," I rose up and answered the door, and was met by the sight of one of my favorite blondes. "Thor?"

"Hail, Lady Jennifer," he said with that old-school charm. "May I and Natasha enter? We wished to speak with Mahmoud."

"Sure!" I blinked at him. "Wait, Nat?"

"I'm here," said a voice behind Thor. The tiny redhead stepped around Thor with that crazy amount of grace she always had. She gave me a sexy smirk. "How's it going, Jen?"

"Great!" I opened the door for them. Mahmoud perked up like a puppy when he saw them.

"Hey guys! What's up?"

"You're chipper this morning," Natasha gave him a smirk. "Oh. Yeah, I get it."

"...Get what?"

"You and Lady Jennifer have affirmed your relationship at last!" Thor said with a grin.

Mahmoud turned bright as a tomato. Even with his dusky brown skin, I could very clearly see it start in his cheeks and go down along his neck to his pecs. "I-I-I-What are you guys-"

"I mean, we were already in a relationship. But yeah, we banged," I shared a grin with Nat, who gave me another smirk as she smoothly sat at the counter and stole Mahmoud's food.

"Are you guys superheroes or high schoolers?" Mahmoud grumbled, still blushing.

"Relax," Thor clapped a hand on my embarrassed boyfriend's shoulder. "It's a natural and good thing."

He actually did relax, giving me a sheepish grin. "Yeah. Yeah, it was pretty great."

So damn cute.

"Still, I'm surprised you're alive," Natasha said idly. "Tony was betting on 'death by snu-snu'."

"...You guys bet on us having sex?" I tried to sound surprised.

"I bet money on Omnitrix kinks popping up," the super-agent grinned.

As soon as she said that, my eyes landed on the Omnitrix. So did Mahmoud and Thor's. We stared at the green glowing gauntlet before sharing a look. "Uh…"

"I mean, not for the first time/Not unless she asked," Dial and I said at the same time. Then we stared at each other.

I'll be honest, I'd been half-tempted, but I didn't know ifhe'dbe open to it. It was weird, right? Right?

Oh god, was I blushing!?

"...Awkward," Thor whispered, while Nat chuckled under her breath. Thor raised his fist to his mouth and coughed. "What were you speaking about before we entered?"

I wasn't relieved at the change in subject. Not too much anyway. I sat down to eat while Mahmoud hurriedly went to get Thor some coffee.

"Jen, uh, was talking about the mission she had while I was getting chewed up and spat out by the Savage Land," he said. His back was turned to us. Which was why he didn't notice how much his little joke affected us.

Natasha stopped eating, her emerald eyes tracing across his back. I'd have gotten jealous at the sexy spy eyeing up my boyfriend if I didn't notice the way her eyes stopped on each scar he'd gained. I wonder if he even noticed the fact he had little ones threading up and down, with a large patch on his left shoulder blade that looked like a raised spider web.

Thor sighed sadly, sitting down heavily on his chair.

I got how they felt. When we'd been lying in bed, I'd found myself counting his scars. They'd felt interesting. Little smooth bumps on his skin. When he was talking about his fights, about that Stend asshole… hearing, in detail, how each one happened, hurt. He'd almost died. And I hadn't been there.

When you saw Dial in action, turning into a giant tiger man to lift cars, into a goo monster to slip through cracks, or a pterodactyl alien that could break the speed of sound, it was hard to remember Mahmoud, the normal human who could bleed. How could he be so strong and so vulnerable at the same time?

But then, I could relate now. The memory was still fresh in my mind.

When he turned back to us, he had coffee in hand for Thor, who took it with a smile. "So, you were in the bank?"

I blinked at how suddenly he just jumped back into things. "What, should I just keep going?"

"Of course!" Thor said happily. "I love a good story. Battles won and lost, great heros triumphing! Natasha never shares her stories," he gave her a sour look.

"Why should I? None of mine are as good as yours," she teased.

Thor paused. Once again, the big guy proved he was immune to sarcasm. "True, but I still want to hear some."

"...It's a good thing you're cute."

Nat, Thor, and I looked at Mahmoud. He shrugged. "What, it's true."

I grinned at him while Thor chuckled, patting Mahmoud's shoulder. "So, right. I might as well start the story from the beginning for you guys?"

"I have nowhere to be," Nat said.

"Well, it all started at the office…"

At the same time I was restarting my story, my phone was buzzing on the dresser in our bedroom. A bunch of notifications from a few different sources. Later I'd take a look at it and find out that while I was pretty happy about the state of the Avengers, some people had some different opinions. Polarizing opinions. I had to stop myself from going out and punching idiots after a few minutes of reading and watching the dumber stuff being said about us.

Like the frog said. It ain't easy being green.

Interlude: Social Media

"J. Jonah Jameson here, from the , to talk about the events of the last few months!" A bombastic man said far louder than needed. He was balding, the remains of flattop haircut starting to fade, wrinkles etched into his face. But when he spoke, it was with an energetic and aggressive manner, his wrinkles giving him the air of a dignified man who was used to righteous anger, for good or ill.

He was wearing a simple suit and sitting at a black desk, the screen behind him showing the bugle logo of his news organization.

"Ever since HYDRA revealed they've been infecting SHIELD like the parasites they are, and Captain America took them down, we've been living in a damn chaotic world, damn chaotic listeners! But lucky for you, JJ is here to break it all down for you with my unbiased report!" he leaned forward. "Now folks, I'm not gonna sugar coat it! Things aren't rosy in the world today! Anyone who claims we live in a better world today islyingto you! But things aren't all bad either. So let's start with the good."

A picture of Captain America came up next to him, the all-American standing on top of rubble, a wide smile on his face as he carried a child in his arms and helped an injured woman stand, an older man over his shoulder.

"First off, we've got the greatest damn hero in the world still standing up for us!" JJ pointed at the image. "In a world of freaks running aroundclaimingto be heroes, Captain America is still the leader of the Avengers. Hell, his sidekick, Falcon," the image of Sam in flight over New York showed up next to Cap. "Is even leading their offshoot team. It's a damn good sign, to show that even when all the crazies are running around, we still have an honest American taking charge in the field!"

JJ's smile was temporary. "But then, we have to talk about that. About the freaks we've got in the world today. Starting with this guy."

An image of Dial showed up. The brown-skinned hero was scowling, dust and mud across his face, hunched over. A far less heroic image than the one shown of Captain America.

"Now, I love Cap. It's easy to tell why. But I have to question his judgment. Why does he trust this man?" Another image, this time of Dial in Blitzwolfer form, biting into a tri-horned demons shoulder like a vicious animal. "Dial, real name Mahmoud Schahed! He came out of nowhere with a watch that he claims holds aliens he can turn into. Inserts himself into the Avengers right when HYDRA makes them desperate for allies, then starts pulling in others to join in no less. Where do I even start!?"

JJ slammed a fist onto the desk. "First off, he's too damn powerful! This guy, kid really, shows up and what? He can turn intoelevendifferent aliens that can each be an Avenger on their own? And does anyone rememberthis?"

An image of a helicarrier appeared. An Upgraded Helicarrier, completely black and covered in green lines like circuitry. It spun it's cannons in various directions and started firing. Green waves of energy split the skies, ripping apart HYDRA forces in moments.

"We're dealing with someone who can turn a helicarrier into a superweapon," JJ said, his voice foreboding in tone. "That's not the least of what he can do either."

JJ was replaced by footage. Four Arms sparring with the Hulk, their fists sending visible shockwaves through the air. Diamondhead slicing through tanks with blades of crystal. Big Chill moving through walls before blasting bursts of ice. Men getting beaten by an invisible force before Fasttrack appeared. Goop burning through a glass window with acid as a man screamed and ran away. Fasttrack blasting massive waves of blue light from his tendrils. Swampfire blasting fire. Rath laughing maniacally as he ripped into HYDRA soldiers, screaming out slurs and taunts. Jury Rigg with a sadistic smile on his face as he hefted a nightmarish gun that inflated the heads of demons like balloons until they couldn't move anymore. Wildmutt, covered in blood and snarling as it fought dire wolves from out of prehistory.

"Let's not forget his 'friends'," JJ said, positively incensed. "First, we've got Carl 'Crusher' Creel," the image of Creel appeared, midway in turning into steel. More images appeared, such as Creel in his boxing days. "A formerthugandcriminal! Known for being a mob enforcer of all things! And then what did he do!? Now I know what you want to say, listeners. 'But Jonah, Creel was reformed!"

He shook his head. "Don't be foolish. Creel was a criminal for a damn long time. Are we supposed to just trust that this career criminal hasreformed!? Tell that to the victims who walk the streets of New York, fearing the name of 'Crusher' Creel!"

"And what about Russia!?" the image of the Winter Guard appeared, standing proud in the sunlight. "Now, I have no problem with fostering better relations between nations. Hell, I welcome it," he scowled. "But the Winter Guard is just the start of a new problem.Governmentsuperhero teams. Teams that will defend the nations of their own interests, first and foremost. Worse, teams that will do work for governments!"

"Say what you will about the Avengers, but when Rio needed help, they went," JJ soured further. "I'll even give credit to Dial. That kid saved lives out there, right alongside Captain America. I didn't see a single Winter Guard member fighting out there, saving people from the rubble."

He slammed a fist on the table. "So why the hell is one of them anAvenger!"

The image of Fantasma appeared, dressed in her purple uniform, floating on a platform of magic and glowing violet.

"A self-proclaimed witch," JJ scoffed, showing just what he thought of that. "Who we know nothing about! She has exactly one good deed to her name that we know about, and that was in service to her own country!? Let's break out a hypothetical. Let's say this 'witch'," he did some quote marks. "Has to help the Avengers. And Russia decides it's against their best interests. You know what she'll choose? Russia. Every Time."

JJ shrugged. "Now, if she proves me wrong, fantastic. But I doubt it."

He leaned back in his seat. "I could go further. Talk about how BRIDGE is coming very close to becoming the strongest damn army on Earth, with a bevy of superhumans under their control called 'Graveyarders' according to my sources. How all their soldiers are packed with tech that can rip through tanks… But I will say one thing."

He tapped a single finger on the table. "I amwarningyou. But I am also here to tell you, I have hope. I am worried that these are the signs of bad things to come. I am worried that governments will take cues from Russia and we'll have big government building secret teams of superhumans, black ops with superpowers, with all the wonderful actions that follow," he lost that excited tone to his voice. "The last few months have shown us we're vulnerable. How dangerous things have become. At any moment, the world can fall out from under us… But we're alsoprotected.

"I may warn you about the possibility of Dial and others becoming threats, because it would be idiotic to just take them at face value! But Captain America, the very man who brought down HYDRA, trusts him. They went shopping damn it!"

A picture of Mahmoud and Steve side by side in Forbidden Planet appeared, the two grinning as they pointed at a comic book.

"If Dial is on the up and up, if we don't end up fighting a war against that insanely powerful alien, then we've got a hell of an ally on our side. If BRIDGE really has shed themselves of HYDRA, and Maria Hill isn't going to use her personal army to start shutting down democracy, then we'll have the world's most advanced soldiers ready to fight off any superpowers we had to fear!"

He calmed down very fast. "It's a big if, I know. But New Yorkers, Rio natives, and much more, know that 'if' is worth it. I'll take the Hulk over the damned Chitauri, I'll take Tony Stark over any demons, and I'll take Dial over robot monkeys."

"...And let's talk about that. Robot monkeys. Because while I will be keeping an eye on the freaks claiming to be helping us, let's not forget the freaks that are confirmed enemies!"

"HYDRA is still out there! Those monsters are still plotting to take away your, our, freedoms! We can't just sit and wait to do something about that! HYDRA needs to be eradicated," the last was said with vicious anger to it. "Then we have things like demons flying around, countries making their own superteams, even AIM is apparently on the rise. There are threats everywhere."

"And honestly, AIM?" he looked incredulous. "Theyjustgot accused of trying to kill Tony Stark, a leader of industry, and thePRESIDENT.And now, the United States Military is going to get back in bed with them again? I don't care if AIM starts making tech that blows everything we've got out of the water! Do not trust them!"

He slammed a fist on the table and growled. "We're about to cut to a commercial for crap nobody wants- What?" JJ stopped to look at someone off-screen. "The hell are you mouthing over there, Jared.No!No, I'm sticking with what I said, damnit! If they want to charge us out the ass so they can sell whatever garbage they want to trick the American people out of, then I'm damn well telling people about it! Except for that 'manscaping' trimmer, the wife likes that one."