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MISADVENTURES IN PARADISE
xi. BLAST FROM THE PAST

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   THE YEAR IS 1943, and Riley should not be here. Alas, she was terribly unlucky, and now, she was currently chasing her boyfriend across the space-time continuum.

   After grabbing a handful of Pym Particle vials, she suited up and jumped through the Quantum Realm to the year 1943. She certainly hadn't missed the feeling of time traveling. The first time it happened, she accidentally traveled five years into the future with the Time Stone. The second time, she was with the Avengers on a mission to kick Thanos's ass. There was also that time Wanda dragged her into Westview, where time moved a bit differently, to say the least. Riley was certain she would never time travel ever again once this was over.

   At least this wasn't her first rodeo. She knew exactly what to expect, including the motion sickness and the discombobulation from the chrono-shift. She had a plan, too. A simple, impossible-to-screw-up plan. She just needed to find Peter and bring him back home. Simple.

   Stumbling out of the Quantum Realm, Riley held her stomach. As her brain rattled in her skull, she grumbled, "I'm sending that stupid machine back to Hank as soon as this is over."

   She steadied herself and gazed up at the world around her. Her grimace fell, her jaw falling with it. New York in the 1940s was exactly how she imagined it would be. If she slapped a sepia filter over the world, it'd look just like the movies. The streets buzzed with life. Women strolled by in their a-line skirts and finest blouses, their hair styled in victory rolls. Men wore either military uniforms or freshly ironed collared shirts, paired with suspenders. Recruiters camped out on every block, and the radios were loud and staticky, most of them playing anti-German sentiment or advertisements for "modern-day" technology between songs.

   A smile crept onto her face. "Cool."

   Standing around aimlessly probably wasn't the best way to start, so she stepped onto the busy streets. She considered turning invisible to avoid all of the stares she was getting, but she was betting on the chance that Peter would see her and her hideous suit before she spotted him.

   If I was Peter right now, where would I go? Riley wondered.

   Peter was resourceful and bright. Knowing him, he was probably on the hunt for someone who could help him. But this was the '40s, the very era where the world's first superhero was created. S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn't been founded yet, and there weren't exactly any superheroes or super-geniuses around that she knew of. Or so she thought.

   "You don't wanna miss it!" chanted an older man. He stood at the end of the street, shoving flyers into the hands of whoever passed him by. "Come see Howard Stark in the flesh tonight at the first-ever Stark Expo! That's right, the first Stark Expo, here in New York City!"

   Riley rushed toward him. "Excuse me! Sir, did you say the Stark Expo?"

   "Call me Stan, young lady!" Stan wore an eager smile, and it didn't falter once, even after noticing her unusual outfit. "You heard right! Are you one of Stark's girls?"

   "W-What?"

   "You're one of Stark's girls, aren't you?" He motioned to her Quantum Suit. "Howard's always having his girls dress up for his big presentations. This costume has got to be my favorite one so far! It's weird, it's flashy, it's futuristic, it's perfect! You're a walking advertisement for Stark Industries! It's genius!"

   Riley slowly nodded. "Well, the Stark Expo's a once-in-a-lifetime event! You didn't happen to see anyone else dressed like me walk by, did you?"

   Stan paused. Then, he pointed a finger at her. "Oh, I know what you're doing, young lady."

   "...You do?"

   "You're playing dumb to pique my interest in the Expo! Asking questions, making me feel like I'll miss out if I don't go... It's brilliant advertising! Howard's a genius, I tell ya! The face of the future!" Stan laughed. He patted her on the back, pushing her forward. "You better get going. The Expo's already started, and I wouldn't want Stark going on with one of his girls missing!"

   Riley figured she wasn't going to get any more information out of Stan, so she took a flyer and headed toward the printed address.

   If Peter was anywhere, he was at the Expo. Riley was positive. She didn't know how he was going to convince Howard Stark to talk to him, never mind convince him to help, and frankly, she didn't want to know. She needed to find Peter before he accidentally made things more complicated.

   She knew when she arrived at the Expo when she saw the flashing lights, the loud music, the fireworks, and all of the "bizarre" inventions highlighted on tall platforms and stages. Although she had traveled to the past, she felt like she had just walked into the future. The Starks had a way of making life seem so much bigger than the world once thought it was.

   But now wasn't the time to admire her grandfather's work. She needed to find Peter. The sooner she found him, the sooner—

   "Woah!" Riley yelped as she walked into a boy. He nearly fell onto the ground with the bag of peanuts he had been holding, but she managed to catch him before he did.

   "I'm sorry!" he frantically squeaked, and it was then when she realized he wasn't a boy. He was a man. He just didn't quite look like it. Frail and short, he tugged on his coat, which hung on his frame. "I'm sorry, ma'am. It was my mistake."

   Riley's face suddenly fell. No fucking way.

   This wasn't just anyone. It was Steve Rogers, pre-serum.

   "Holy shit," she whispered. "I mean, er... Sorry! You really caught me off guard there!"

   Don't freak out, don't freak out, don't freak out.

   "I'm sorry, ma'am," Steve timidly insisted. He was so embarrassed, he couldn't even look her in the eye. "I wasn't paying attention—"

   "Why are you apologizing?" Riley interrupted. "I'm the one who walked into you. It was my fault. And don't try to argue because I totally knocked those peanuts out of your hand."

   Steve peered up at her, taken aback. He wasn't surprised by her outfit or peculiar way of talking, just shocked that she wasn't speaking down to him for once. Riley could tell.

   "Ma'am, that isn't necessary—"

   "Didn't I just say not to argue with me?" she teased, pressing her hand on his shoulder. "Take the apology, alright? You can't blame yourself for everything, you know."

   Before Steve could utter another word, Riley scurried away, unable to wipe away her giddy smile. When she was far enough, she squealed excitedly. Even after all these years, she still had a soft spot for Steve Rogers.

   It wasn't much later when, at long last, she finally found Peter Parker. He was standing along the outskirts of a crowd, trying to make his way inside. But the crowd didn't budge as Howard Stark strutted across the stage in the distance.

   Her grandfather was everything the stories claimed, charming and suave. It was hard wrapping her head around it — that she was seeing him in his glory, long before he founded S.H.I.E.L.D., long before he had a son that would later adopt her. A time before history was really made.

   Snapping back into reality, she hurried toward Peter.

   "Peter!" She didn't have to be louder than the crowd, just loud enough for his super-hearing to pick up her voice. "Peter!"

   Peter's head suddenly whipped around, his eyes finding her instantly. The world stopped for a moment. Calm. His Riley. But then shock overpowered that calm, and he rushed to reunite with her. He pushed past the people, like a moth drawn to light, and when he finally reached her, he pulled her in for a tight embrace.

   "You're real. You're actually here," Peter gasped. His hands were on her face, making sure he wasn't dreaming. Their foreheads pressed together. He was just so relieved to see her. "What are you doing here!?"

   "Looking for you! I'm so, so sorry about this, Pete. Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

   "Well, I'm kinda freakin' out, but I'm okay for the most part," he promised. "Are you crazy?!"

   "I don't know, maybe!"

   "You shouldn't be here! Neither of us should be here!" he went on. "How did this even happen?"

   "The power trip made the Time Machine malfunction and turn back on. I thought the suits didn't have any Pym Particles left, but I was wrong," she explained. "Remind me not to press random buttons on any machine ever again."

   "Deal. I can't believe this is happening," he rambled. "We're in the '40s, dude!"

   "I know!"

   "The '40s!"

   "Stop repeating that, it's freaking me out even more!" she cried. "I haven't been able to catch my breath since I ran into Steve!"

   "Wait," Peter grabbed her shoulders and shook her, "Steve Rogers!?"

   "No, Steve Jobs," Riley sassed. "Yes, Steve Rogers! Pre-serum Steve Rogers! He's so tiny, it's adorable—!"

   "Wait, did you talk to him!?"

   "It was an accident!" she insisted. "Don't worry, I didn't say much. Did you talk to anyone?"

   "Not really," said Peter. "I saw Bucky though. I didn't talk to him, just kinda saw him from a distance. It was so weird. I don't think I've ever seen him actually smile until today."

   "Hold on, you saw Bucky smile?"

   He nodded, taking her shoulders and re-positioning her. Surely enough, she had a perfect view of Bucky Barnes, dressed in his military uniform and chatting up two very pretty girls. The grin on his face was priceless. He looked so... happy. Steve must've just been with him.

   "Woah," she marveled.

   "Right?" Peter agreed. "Don't worry, I didn't talk to anyone else. I was hoping to talk to your grandpa, but then I found you. Or... you found me, I guess."

   "Good. We have to be careful. Time travel isn't like the movies, but the rules are all the same: minimize communication with others, don't reference future events to anyone, and don't change things that are supposed to happen. We need to leave this year exactly as we found it to prevent the creation of other timelines," Riley explained. As she spoke, she took his hand and led him to the exit where there weren't any people around.

   "Got it," he said. "But it's not like we're staying here for much longer, right? I mean, you do have a plan, right?"

   "No, I just decided to follow you into the '40s without any plan of bringing us back whatsoever."

   "Alright, sassy," Peter said. "I was just making sure. I don't know if I can handle any more recruiters trying to draft me into the war."

   She cringed. "I'm really sorry about all of this." She took his arm, opening up his wrist compartment to replace the vial inside. "I didn't even know we had more Pym Particles. If I did, I would've been more careful, and we wouldn't be in the '40s right now."

   "It's not like you could've known this would happen. It was an accident," Peter assured. Despite everything, he still looked at her so... fondly. It intimidated her. "You can't take the blame for everything that goes wrong, you know."

   Riley faltered. "I... guess so." She quickly changed out her vial, too. "Alright, I set both of our suits back to 2023. It should take us to the exact second we left. On my count, press this button, and we'll be on our way home."

   "Fingers crossed."

   "Don't worry. I've got this completely under control," Riley promised.

   Peter eyed her. "It's okay if you don't. We can figure this out together."

   Again, she hesitated. "...Yeah, you're right. Hopefully, this will work. Alright, going Quantum in three... two... one..."

○ ○ ○

   When they exited the Quantum Realm again, Peter groaned, "How can anyone get used to that? I think my soul just left my body. Is that normal? Am I dead? Again?"

   Ignoring him, Riley took a moment to steady herself again. She peered up at her surroundings, expecting to find the blank walls of the Avengers Facility again. Instead, she was met with tall brick walls, a narrow path of concrete, and trash bins huddled together.

   "Why are we in an alley right now?" she wondered.

   "Maybe your coordinates were a little off." He joined her side, gazing up at the world around them. "Morning already? Okay, yeah, your coordinates were definitely off."

   Riley frowned at this, but oh well. They were home. It didn't matter now.

   "Yeah, guess so. Hey, is it kinda warm out here to you?" Riley asked.

   Peter paused, realizing she was right. "Wasn't it snowing when we left? Wait, do you see that?" He pointed to the world beyond, where smoke and flames lapped at the heavens.

   BOOM!

   "HOLY SHIT!" Peter grabbed Riley and pulled her back just before the explosion sounded. Screams of terror shredded their ears. Panicked civilians went running in the opposite direction if they could. Others were crushed or caught beneath the debris, their pained groans tuned out by more explosions. "What was that!?"

   BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

   Riley's entire body tensed, her throat closing up as the buildings beside them violently trembled. They could collapse any minute now.

   "We need to move!" she struggled to yell. "NOW!"

   They sprinted out from the alley as another explosion sounded. Riley looked up at the sky, her heart dropping into her stomach. Past the smoke, figures were flying above them. Chitauri aliens, to be exact.

   "Something tells me Global Warming isn't the reason why it's hot out here," Peter gulped.

   The Chitauri were everywhere: in the sky, pouring out from a large wormhole created by the Tesseract, scaling buildings, blasting their weapons at the humans on the ground. At the center of the chaos was a certain God of Mischief. New York was in a state of terror, and the year was officially 2012.

   "You've got to be kidding me. It's 2012 again," Riley groaned. "But how—? LOOK OUT!"

   She held out her hand, blasting UV rays as an alien charged at Peter. As she did, Peter lunged for another alien that was trying to attack her from behind.

   "We gotta get out of here," Peter said. "We have to get back to the future!"

   Riley shot him an irritated look. "How long have you been waiting to make that reference?"

   "Uh, 70 years, give or take?"

   Iron Man soared above them. A herd of Chitauri flew after him, weapons firing one after another. He dodged them with ease. Riley could hear his panicked yet cocky laughter in the back of her memories, and it made her smile. It was hard to remember life before the Chitauri Invasion, a time where Tony enjoyed everything about being Iron Man.

   "Hey, Tink, you said you needed friends, right?" Tony's voice projected over the noise.

   Not too far away from them, a small girl stood among the rubble. Though her face was concealed by a white mask, it was clear she was young. Despite this, she stood tall, fighting the aliens around her with a masterful touch.

   The girl turned at the sound of his voice, quickly noticing that he was leading the herd toward her. "You asshole," she grumbled.

   "Is that...?" Peter lingered, awestruck. "Is that you?"

   Agent O'Dair climbed onto a neighboring car, and with her hands, she forged a flat forcefield, its shape reminding Riley of a giant frisbee. Then, as Tony flew overhead, she flicked her wrist and threw the 'frisbee' at the aliens, slicing them in half and killing them instantly.

   Peter's eyes widened. "That was sick!"

   Riley smiled at the sight. "Hell yeah, it was."

   She opened up the compartment in her suit where the Time GPS was. It was perfectly intact, which baffled her. There was no reason for it to have malfunctioned and brought them to 2012, as far as she could see. When she explained this to Peter, his eyebrows raised so high that they nearly reached his hairline.

   "What do you mean!? You pressed the buttons and sent us to the '40s without any issue! Why's it all screwed up now?" he worried.

   "How should I know? Stop panicking!" Riley exclaimed.

   "You stop first!"

   "You started it!" she ricocheted. "Let me think. Maybe I put in the wrong coordinates, like you said. Maybe something got caught in the GPS, like... dust or a bug or debris. It's fine!" She blew at the machine in her wrist, flashing him her famous smile. "I have this completely under control!" She reached into her pocket and withdrew another vial of Pym Particles. "Let's try this again."

   But Riley did not have anything under control, and she would realize that in the next few seconds.

   As she held the vial, waving it in the air, one of the Chitauri swooped down from the skies and stole it from her grasp. It happened so fast that neither of them processed it until the alien made a loud hollering sound of victory.

   There was a pause as the couple, completely frozen, exchanged shocked glances.

   "Pete..." Riley trailed off. "Tell me that alien didn't just steal our Pym Particles."

   He nervously chuckled. "Well... it sorta, kinda did, but it's okay! We have more, right?"

   "Yes, but that doesn't change the fact that an alien from Thanos's army now has access to technology that can bring anyone across an alternate dimension to any time they want!" she exclaimed. "Who knows what Thanos or Loki could do if they got their hands on something like that!?"

   "Calm down! It's just one vial! It's not like they stole your suit. Those guys probably don't even know how to work a toaster, I'm sure it's okay if they have one little vial of this stuff."

   "It doesn't matter! We have to leave this year exactly as we found it," she said. "Stay here, I'll get it back."

   "You can't go after it by yourself—!"

   "I can and I will! Besides, you have no way of hiding your identity," she argued. "I'll stay invisible and keep a low profile. I'll get the vial. Just hide here and keep these safe." She reached into her pockets, shoving the rest of the vials into his hands. "Trust me. I'll be back in no time."

   He visibly hesitated, but she was right. "Be careful."

   "You, too." She quickly kissed his cheek, only to pause, like maybe there was something else she was supposed to say at that moment. Oh, never mind that. She had to find that vial. Turning invisible, Riley took off on a forcefield and didn't look back.

   She zipped through the air, riding the wind currents with ease. Dodging the Chitauri and the overall destruction of the state came easily. She tried not to take it all in too frequently, keeping her focus on the vial. If she saw someone on the verge of death, she knew she would rush to save the day. The hardest part was accepting that she couldn't do that. Everything had to remain exactly as it was supposed to be. The fabric of time was too fragile. Even one tiny change could screw up everything.

   She kept wishing for a more efficient way to locate the vial. Since she didn't have access to JARVIS, FRIDAY, or JOCASTA with this suit, all she could do was search from the sky and pray she found it before anyone else did.

   She cursed to herself as she squinted, her shitty vision not helping her out very much. She was running low on energy, the state was on fire, and the vial was nowhere to be seen. She needed to either think of a better plan or get hit with some good luck.

   Naturally, that was when she got hit. Not with good luck, of course. No, that would be too easy.

   An arrow — more specifically, Clint's arrow — whizzed past her, lodging into an alien that had been flying near her. Once the arrow made contact, there was a quiet beep... beep... beep... Then, BOOM! It exploded, sending Riley and the alien free falling through the sky.

   She landed on the balcony of Stark Tower with a grunt, the shattered glass doing nothing to cushion her fall. She soon stood again, no longer invisible, allowing her to see the soot and ash that had built up over her suit.

   She took a moment to recall where all the Avengers were supposed to be. Tony and Thor were in the sky, and Clint was likely perched up on a high building. Her younger self was supposed to be on defense, leaving her and Hulk deep within the city. Natasha, Roman, and Steve probably split up at this point, too. The only question left concerned Loki's whereabouts... Oh no.

   It was then when Riley realized Clint hadn't shot down an alien. He shot down Loki.

   Loki laid on the balcony near her, groaning sourly. His head whipped upward, his jet-black hair flipped over. He looked irritated, which she figured was a natural reaction from anyone who got outsmarted and struck down by Clint Barton. Riley knew how he felt first-hand.

   She watched, frozen with surprise. She considered making a great escape of some kind before he noticed her, but that was when she found the tiny vial in his hands. Because of course, Loki managed to find the vial before she did.

   If Riley thought retrieving the vial from an alien would be arduous, this would be ten times harder. Aliens were child's play to her at this point. But Loki wasn't just an alien. He was a god, and Riley had never fought a god before. Aliens, robots, titans, evil magicians, super-soldiers, spies, even Avengers. Never a god. She sparred with Thor many times before, but he never put her in a situation as serious as this one (though sometimes it felt that way. Thor didn't take sparring lightly). But she couldn't walk away knowing Loki had the vial. She refused.

   There was a long pause of silence, the kind that made Riley hold her breath with anticipation, as Loki slowly turned toward her. It didn't take him long to recognize her. Once he did, a Cheshire Cat grin spread across his pale face.

   "Well," Loki greeted, rising to his feet. Part of Riley was unnerved at how easily he stood again. Fighting him wouldn't be easy. She'd fought him only twice as a child, and he nearly tore her head off both times, "if it isn't the youngest Avenger, herself."

   "Well," Riley mocked, "if it isn't a pain in my ass."

   "Come to beg for mercy, have you? It's about time." Loki stepped away from her calmly, shattered glass crunching beneath his shoes. He entered the towers where the windows once stood. "It might benefit you to shed some tears while you're at it, maybe bring me an offering of some sort. It won't secure your safety, but at least your death will bear some relevance."

   "It's always a show with you." Riley rolled her eyes. "I didn't realize theatrics were your thing."

   "Yes, I'm sure you know plenty about performances. You're Stark's little pet, after all," Loki taunted.

   "As if!"

   "Then perhaps you've come to accept humiliation once again," he suggested. "Would you prefer to be thrown out the window again, or shall we jump to the part where I mercilessly kill you? I can't say I was holding out for a hero, so I'd like to get this over with."

   "Now playing Holding Out For A Hero by Bonnie Tyler," JARVIS announced.

   There was an awkward pause as the song started to play throughout the tower, but they quickly dismissed it.

   "Actually, since you asked so kindly, I'm here for that." Riley nodded to the vial. "And I'm not leaving until you hand it over."

   "Leave? As in, leave this time?" Loki haughtily laughed, watching how her face fell. "Do you take me for a fool? No tricks you pull will work on me. I can see you somehow time-traveled here. Let me guess, you can't get home without this?" He waved the vial, the sunlight catching the red particles. "Fine, I'll give it to you — in exchange for your life, that is."

   "You want a fight?" Riley sneered. "Fine. Game on."

   Turning invisible was the most expected thing she could do, but it worked like a charm every time. No one ever saw her coming, and Loki was no exception.

   She punched him in the gut hard. Maybe the hardest she'd hit anyone in a while. She had a habit of underestimating her own physical strength, usually leaning on the energy in her veins to save her ass. But at the end of the day, she was a superhuman with enhanced strength and things of the like. Not as strong as Steve, Bucky, or Peter, but strong enough to send a god on his ass.

   Loki could only take her hits for so long. He was quick, keen. He anticipated her next strike and swung. She grunted, visible again. He swung, she dodged. She swung, he dodged. It was a tricky game they played, yet Loki didn't loosen his grip on the vial for even a second.

   They went back and forth for a while, but Loki was much more durable than her, and it showed. Though he seemed mostly untouched, Riley was bloodied and bruised all over. When blood spouted from her nose, Loki laughed.

   "Bleeding so much already? You are no match for a god." Loki waved his hands, daggers manifesting at his fingertips. "Now, we can do this the easy way or my way." He didn't wait for her to respond, flicking his wrist and sending the sharp blades her way.

   But his smile fell when the knives stopped mid-air, securing within a forcefield before they could cut into her. Then, in her battered and bloodied state, Riley grinned up at him. "How about my way?" she ricocheted.

   She pushed her forcefield toward Loki, the knives flinging back at him. He dodged them and summoned another. He bolted at her, attacking remorselessly. She dodged, bending backward to prevent them from slitting her throat open.

   When he swung again, Riley caught his wrist and twisted his arm. She pushed him onto his knees and punched him in the jaw, then the gut. He rolled backward, cowering with discomfort. But Loki had one more trick up his sleeve.

   As Riley marched toward him, Loki's appearance suddenly changed. His skin tanned and his eyes darkened into a warm shade of brown. His long hair shortened, his face quickly aging. No longer did he look like himself. No, he had taken on the appearance of Riley's biological father. Rob. Clint must've told Loki about her past when she was brainwashed.

   "My daughter, please. This fighting has gotten out of control," Loki pleaded through Rob's voice. "Please, you wouldn't want to hurt your dear father again, would you?"

   Riley stared at him for maybe three seconds before bursting out with laughter. "Actually, I would!"

   His face fell. "Wait, what—?"

   Again, she kicked him in the face. Loki's appearance reverted.

   "Something tells me you don't realize who I am. I'm sure you've heard of it. Thor calls me it more than he calls me by my name," Riley snarled, charging her body with energy. She leaned toward his face. "You might be a god, but your world revolves around me."

   Loki gasped as the light around her grew. "Child of the Sun," he panted.

   She blasted her energy at him. She shot at him again, and again, and again. Loki tried to dodge and retaliate, but her light was too blinding. Further and further back, she blasted him away. He shouted in pain throughout all of it as he experienced what it was like to stand too close to the sun. And when they were finally on the balcony again, Riley stopped.

   "Now," she said, nearly breathless, "the vial."

   Despite his exhaustion, Loki refused. "Never!"

   Riley sighed. She dusted her hands off, shaking her head. "I was afraid it'd come to this. You might wanna brace yourself."

   A puzzled look struck Loki's bruised face, but before he could ask for clarification, the Hulk suddenly leaped onto the balcony. Roaring, he grabbed the god and flung him back inside the tower. Riley stepped aside, watching in a mixture of awe and fear.

   Hulk stomped toward Loki, ready to pummel him again, but that was when the God of Mischief sprang to his feet and bellowed, "ENOUGH! You are, all of you, beneath me! I am a god, you dull creatures. And I will not be bullied by—!"

   Hulk didn't bother letting Loki finish. He seized Loki's leg and, much like a rag doll, swung him around. Back and forth, back and forth, Loki's body smashed against the floor of Stark Tower until Hulk was satisfied. By the time he was done swinging him around, the floor was covered in Loki-shaped holes, and Loki was rendered speechless.

   "Puny god," Hulk grunted, walking back toward the balcony.

   He headed straight for Riley, and for a moment, she feared he might attack her next. She had gotten lucky when she saw him approaching, but she wasn't sure if he could recognize her as a friend rather than a foe. And just when she braced herself for an attack, Hulk stared down at her and flashed her one of the strangest grins she'd ever seen. Then, he was gone.

   Riley giggled hysterically as she returned to Loki's side. He still hadn't moved, only whimpering and laying with wide eyes. "So, are you ready to give up now?" she asked.

   "P-Please..." Loki whimpered, but he never finished his sentence.

   Riley gasped, placing a hand over her heart. "Oh my God," she cooed. "Are you begging?"

   "I-I..." Loki stammered. "I thought... you weren't one for... for performances?"

   Riley shrugged. "The world's watching my every move. Might as well give them the performance of a lifetime, right?"

   Loki didn't respond. He was in too much pain to bother.

   "Now, I'll be taking that." She crouched down and retrieved the vial, at long last. "Oh, and one more thing. This is for my family."

   A bright light enveloped her again. It surrounded her, rapidly growing. Loki cried out as it burned his retinas. When the light faded, Riley was gone, invisible and flying away.

   She grinned eagerly to herself, admiring the dirty vial in her hands. "I'm the best," Riley mused.